Remember Me
by aunomdelarose
Summary: After the Second Wizarding War, Hermione Granger goes missing. Five years later, Draco Malfoy finds her in Muggle London, living as Lola Haze. Will he bring her back to their world to her former life, or keep her for himself? Post-Hogwarts, EWE.
1. Chapter 1

Draco Malfoy put down his cup of daily brandy in the morning to read today's paper. It was a special one, a little bit thicker than usual. This was because it was a special day, sort of a holiday really.

_Today marks the fifth year since the Second Wizarding World War, where the light has won over the dark. It was the day Harry Potter, our beloved hero, finally defeated the late Tom Riddle, known to all as Dark Lord Voldemort, therefore bringing peace back into our land. Potter, along with his beloved friends, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, found Voldemort's so-called horcruxes to end his evil reign. The Golden Trio with members of the Order of the Phoenix fought the Death Eaters, Voldemort's army, at the Hogwarts Castle..._

He skimmed, skipping the parts he didn't recognize or didn't want to.

_Many lives were taken: Fred Weasley, Remus and Nymphadora Lupin, Severus Snape, to name a few..._

_Potter's friend Weasley however is still in St. Mungo's comatose and Granger still missing..._

_This day reminds us the cruelty and effects of war, for us to be thankful of every day of our lives, and make the most of it._

Draco snorted when he finished the article. They have been doing this for years, and he was sick and tired of hearing the story over and over again. About how heroic Harry Potter was. He did not want to sound smug, for he and Potter were co-Aurors, and had some professional respect for the man. He didn't have it all the time, of course, because there were times when he'd notice that Potter had somehow lost a part of his sanity during the War. He was more of a freak than he was at Hogwarts, which wasn't a surprise, when your only family were half-brain dead and lost, you have no one.

And he wasn't the only one who lost his family, Lucius died that day too. _Stupid idiot stood by his Lord than take care of his own family_, he thought. He didn't feel bad that his name was not mentioned at the paper, he deserved that. He only had his mother left, physically but not mentally. She was cold and distant, and kept saying 'I wonder when your father will come back from meeting the Dark Lord' and 'Oh I do hope your father will come home from their excursions soon'. The woman has lost it, but he never complained, for other than that she was and always will be the caring mother he had.

He put down the newspaper and then took another gulp of his beverage, looking at the view from his veranda in Muggle London. It would have been a terrible idea if he was told ten years ago, when his prejudice towards Muggles was still stuck on his cranium. But somehow he found solace in it for him and for his mother. No sign of magic, just keeping everything simple. He went here every weekend, staying with his mother.

Suddenly he heard an old man and a young woman bump into each other on the street. The man carried a paper bag full of fruits and vegetables, and it toppled all over the ground.

"Oh no! I am so sorry Mister Gibbs!" The young woman apologized, and then crouched down to gather the food that fell. She had a nice bum.

"No, I'm sorry Lola. I had a load of groceries, you see, I couldn't even see the way! Where you off?"

"To work, I'm already late. Sorry again, sir!" They rotated, going into opposite directions, parting ways. Draco caught a glimpse of the woman.

She had long, brunette hair, with curls that tousled like glorious grape vines. She had a small figure, about a little over five feet. Her dainty fingers brushed her hair strands away from her face to the back of her right ear. She had a cute button nose, brown eyes, and skin that glowed as it was lit upon by the sun.

He knew that face all too well.

It was Hermione Granger.

He instantly got out of his chair and bolted out of the room to the stairs, almost tripping and hitting the foot of the table.

"Why sir, what's wrong?" It was Madam Welsh, his mother's caretaker. "Where are you headed?" He did not answer.

"Draco dear, what did I tell about running around the house?" Narcissa scolded as if he was still ten years old, but he didn't answer as well.

He did not even bother getting a coat, coming out of their house in his thin polo shirt, khaki pants and oxfords.

"Granger!"

She didn't seem to hear him, her back still turned awat. He ran towards the other side of the street, and almost got hit by a cab.

"Oy! Watch where you're going!" The driver shouted.

"Sorry!" He quickly said and then ran towards the woman.

"Granger!"

She still didn't look back, why didn't she look back? He ran further, finally catching up to her and then holding her shoulder. She turned around.

"G- Gr-" Draco panted, catching his breath. "Granger."

She looked at him, perplexed. He knew that face too. "I'm sorry?"

He looked at her, and he could not have been more sure. It was her, it was Hermione Granger. Her small face, her incorrigible hair, her freckles. It was definitely her, no doubt.

"Don't play with me, Granger."

She looked at her, bewildered. "I'm sorry, but I don't know what you're talking about." She was about to turn when he grabbed her by the arm.

"You, Hermione Granger, we all thought you were dead." Draco said, hoping he'd clear it out for her.

She eyed him, and thought he was attractive, other than the odd greeting. He dressed and presented himself well. Surely he's not mental? Visibly impaired, maybe. "I'm really sorry, but I'm not who you think I am."

"What?" Draco was flustered. "But, I'm quite certain—"

"No, really. I'm not." She didn't want to sound rude. "I'm late, so please don't pester me anymore." She then turned around and then brisk-walked, it wouldn't help for she was already late, but did it anyway.

Draco was confused. He was entirely sure that who he just saw was the missing Hermione Granger. He would know what she'd look like, he attended school with her for years for Merlin's sake. They all saw each other undergo puberty. It wouldn't make such drastic change in five years. And her voice, he knew her voice, and it was precisely how she sounded. Bossy with a hint of annoyance, that was Granger all right. He sighed in defeat and then walked back to his house.

"Sir, why were you in a rush?" He heard Madam Welsh ask him as he entered back home.

"Nothing, I just thought I saw someone I knew."

"Oh really? Who is it darling?" Narcissa inquired before she took a sip from her tea cup.

"Hermione Granger."

"What?" She shrieked. "Did she see you?"

"She did, but she did not recognize me."

"Really." Narcissa pondered. "You should have captured her, Draco, and let your father bring her to the Dark Lord. I'm sure he will be most pleased."

"Madam, how many times do I have to tell you that the 'Dark Lord' you are talking about is already dead?" Madam Welsh said. Draco told her a clever story that Voldemort was supposedly her scary, manipulative, father-in-law. He was certain she wouldn't understand it if he told the truth.

"Oh, that's nonsense!" Narcissa opposed. "In fact, Lucius is with him right now, they are on their secret expeditions. Aren't they, Draco?"

"Sure." He only answered. "If you'll excuse me, I will be back to my room." He ascended the stairs.

How can he be wrong? It was her! It was really her! His memory isn't impaired, and sure as hell he hasn't gone bonkers. But how come she said it wasn't her?

* * *

><p>Hello there! This is my second fic, and first M too! I am so excited!<p>

I know some of you who have read my other fic,** Hurts Like Heaven**, probably wants to spank me right now for not sorting my priorities. Don't worry! HLH will be running smoothly as much as this one.

First off, usual disclaimer, the characters are all JK Rowling's. The plot is mine.

Second, reviews and comments are exciting to read! So don't hesitate to send one. :)

Sorry if this first chapter is too short, I just wrote it out of the top of my head! My cranium is mucked up, you see. I'll be sure to make longer ones next time. Subscribe, comment, review! I love you all! x


	2. Chapter 2

Draco entered the second level of the Ministry of Magic, to the Auror's Headquarters and then towards his cubicle. On his way he passed by Harry Potter's. Draco did a pretty good job of ignoring him, only talking when necessary, but this time he could not help himself when he found him incessantly rolling a small hourglass. Draco peeked in and asked. "Aren't you supposed to file some report to Robards this afternoon?"

Harry escaped from his trance, the fog on his eyes now clear, looking at his co-worker. "Oh, right. I knew that."

"What are you doing with that?"

"Oh this?" Harry said. "Well, you see, Hermione had possession of a time-turner before. And we had these adventures during our third year. We saved Sirius then. And Buckbeak, too."

Draco didn't want to start a conversation regarding his godfather, especially since his death involved not only Draco's father but also his nutcase of an aunt. "Ah yes, Hagrid's pet that almost killed me."

"He was nice, you just provoked him then." Harry reasoned out. "God, I miss her."

"Buckbeak?"

"No, Hermione." He sighed. "It's been five years, but I still feel that she's alive, you know?"

"Sure." Draco mumbled. Should he tell him about what he saw the other day?

"I mean, I don't even think I could have survived then without her. She always knew what to do. Hell, I don't even think I'll survive now." Harry brooded. His eyes were filled with five years' worth of longing. He stared back at the hourglass, possibly reminiscing the times that he and Granger had together.

"Get back to work, Potter." Draco only replied. Yes, he'd keep it to himself. But that doesn't mean he'd stop at just that.

oooooooooo

It was the weekend again, and Draco sat on his usual spot at the veranda. He decided to wake a little earlier than usual, it was still a little colder than usual, the morning fog and musk present. He remembered that she was late then, so perhaps he'd catch her on a good time now. Hermione Granger was never late.

Draco Malfoy, however, was never patient.

He rose from his seat and went downstairs, offering himself another cup of his brandy. No, he wasn't an alcoholic. He looked through their windows, in case he missed her. He paced back and forth across their living room, possibly thinking of how to talk to her, how to begin a conversation. He paced and then looked, paced then looked, and it went on and on. Why couldn't she remember? Or maybe she really wasn't Granger, she must be some doppelganger of some sort. It's possible, he's read those freaky articles. A long lost twin maybe? But the resemblance was incredibly uncanny, it was most definitely her. He brought his drink and opened the door, looking at the street from left to right, checking if she was on her way. No sign of her. He closed their door from outside and sat on their patio. He started tapping his feet in different beats as he sipped from his cup.

Half an hour later, he saw her. Her hair was gathered in a messy bun, a few strands moving in front of her face as it was being blown by the wind. She had a long blue velvet jacket, from which she hugged her chest. He put down his drink and then approached her.

"Hey!"

She turned to the source of the voice. It was the stranger that called her a different name from last week again. She looked at him again, this time he was wearing a flannel shirt, pants and loafers. It looked good on him, so good that he must have came out of a men's magazine. If he didn't act so strange to her then she might have entertained the idea of them going out. Hush Lola, she thought, don't be so close-minded. What did he want now?

"Yes?"

"Um, hello." Draco put his hand in his pockets. "Do you remember me? From last week?"

She looked at her watch. She had enough time to be an hour early for work, so she could spare some time for a chat. "Yes, you called me a different name?"

"Right, Hermione Granger."

"Right."

"Well, I apologize if I have mistaken you for someone else. It's just that you looked like someone I knew." Draco said.

"I understand."

"Thanks." He paused. "But, may I know your real name?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Is this your way of hitting on women?"

"What? I don't—" Draco stopped. Oh she meant flirting, he thought. "Yes, unfortunately you caught me." He gave her a smile in return. Play along, Draco.

Well he sure is attractive, it wouldn't hurt, she thought. "I thought so, my name is Lola Haze." She handed out her hand.

"Draco Malfoy." He held her hand and they shook.

"Neat name. I've never heard of it. Are you a local?"

"No, but thank you. So Lola, what do you do?"

"I'm a slash."

"Sorry?"

"A slash, a person with two or more jobs. I'm a writer-slash-waitress. And you?"

"Family business owner." Partly true, he was the owner of the Malfoy business, taking over his late father. But he insisted he wanted more physical action when it came to his work, so he took the Auror job as well. Turns out he was a 'slash' too.

"Ah really, what business?" She asked.

"It's a secret." Draco winked.

"You're not in a mafia, aren't you?" She joined the banter.

"Oh no, absolutely not." He had no idea what that was.

"Good." She slightly giggled. "I haven't seen you before, did you just move in?"

"My mother lives here, I only come here during the weekends to visit."

"Ah, how nice."

"She lives at that green house, over there." He pointed it to her.

"Neat. Very Victorian." She commented.

"She's a woman of class. Madam Welsh accompanies her."

"Oh, I know her! She buys fruits at Mister Gibbs' stand."

"Who?"

"Mister Gibbs is my neighbor, he's the owner of the fruit and vegetable stand at the corner before this."

"Then I take it you live near there?" He smirked.

"Obviously." She rolled her eyes. He had a very mean but sensual smile. "Well, I should be off to work. I'll see you around."

"See you around."

Oddly enough, Draco's smile never left as his view of her slowly diminished. He walked back to his house, took his cup that he left before he entered.

He just flirted with Hermione Granger.

And she did the same.

It was like teenage years all over again.

It was… amusing.

"Why Mister Malfoy, what were you doing outside this time of day?" Madam Welsh asked him.

"I met someone today."

"Ah, a girl I suppose?" She teased. "What's the name?"

"Lola. Lola Haze. You don't suppose you know her, do you?"

"Ah yes, the lovely Lola!" She exclaimed. "Very well-mannered, she is. And she seems to be very smart, pretty too! I'm not surprised; a lad like you would go for someone like her."

"Oh please, I barely know the girl." The new her, he thought.

"Well, I heard from some people that she came here no more than five years ago. She had some sort of mental sickness then, I didn't bother to ask further. She seems to be getting along fine now, anyway."

"Really, and is she with someone?"

"You mean like a boyfriend? Not that I've heard of."

"No." he chuckled. "I meant a companion, a friend. Did she have someone with her when she came here years ago?"

"Oh, I wouldn't know. I'm not that familiar with the girl. I'm not that much of an eavesdropper, Mister Malfoy." She badgered. "Why don't you ask around the neighborhood? I'm sure she has friends around."

He would do exactly that.

The next morning, he got himself ready for a little walk around the neighborhood. It was such a shame, if he had bothered to look around two years ago when he transferred his mother to London, he might have seen her sooner.

He walked to the street to his left, to the Mister Gibbs fruit and vegetable stand. He looked around. There were fruits on one corner and vegetables on the other. There were a lot of varieties- from apples, oranges, pears, to beans, cabbages, and carrots. It had the farmer-like, organic smell, he assumed.

"Anything you want to buy, young man?"

An old man came in through the door. He was presumably in his mid-forties, with pale skin and a fat belly which he tried to hide with a shirt and overalls.

"I'd like a few green apples, please." Luckily, Draco brought a few muggle money, just in case. The man picked several apples and then weighed them on the scale. When it was enough he put it in a paper bag. "Here you go."

"Thank you."

"Say, are you new here? I haven't seen you around here before."

"Not really, just never got out too much. Draco Malfoy, sir."

"Arnold Gibbs." They shook hands. "Well, it's good you finally got a look around, this place is nice and the people here are very friendly."

"Yes, I have noticed."

"Why, have you met anyone else?"

"Only one, a Lola Haze."

"Ah, the sweetpea!" He heartily cried. "One of the nicest people you'll ever meet in town and the prettiest one too. Ha ha!"

"Yes, she looks interesting. What's her story?"

"Interesting, huh? Well, if you insist! Oh, you might as well sit down lad if you want to know all of it." Mister Gibbs offered Draco to sit on the bench. He sighed. "Well, where should I start? That she's single? Ahahahaha!"

This man liked to laugh, apparently.

"Well she came here five years ago all by herself. She said she had amnesia and wandered off here, didn't know how she got her name either and has been here ever since."

"Oh." No sign of magical influence anywhere, no trace of someone from the Wizarding World. Amnesia, he says? No wonder she didn't glare at him the first time she saw him. "How did she get by?"

"Well with a face and manners like hers, people wouldn't hesitate to help her. I give her some oranges every Mondays, she likes those."

"I see. She seems to be a very mysterious girl."

"Bet you'd like to know her better, wouldn't you?" He sniggered again.

"Oh yes, I do." Draco replied.

* * *

><p>Thank you so so much to those who subscribed to this fic by just reading the first chapter! tears

I finally have everything sorted out in my head! Praise JK Rowling! She owns this all, by the way. I'm just borrowing.

Feel free to review! I love reading them. :)


	3. Chapter 3

"Thank goodness you're not late today."

"Oh, come on that was last week!"

"I just had to rub it on you, it was your first one ever." A woman with jet black, curls-beyond-repair hair teased Lola. She had ivory skin with freckles on her nose, normal figure, but had terrible posture.

"That's because you're always late, Caroline."

"And yet I'm still here, because I'm the owner."

"Oh, I forgot!" Lola snickered. "Maybe because I feel like I'm doing all your responsibilities."

"You take them from me, if you don't remember." She teased back. "By the way, your _friend_ came here before you. He wanted to give you this." She handed Lola a card. Lola opened it and read.

_Lola,_

_Dinner tonight? My treat._

_C_

"Why don't you two just date already?" Caroline scolded.

"We're just friends."

"Friends? Please." She scoffed. "I've known the two of you for years, and I see the way he looks at you. It's that make-a-decent-man-out-of-me look, it's scary."

"That's because you're the type of person who doesn't want any commitment."

The oven chimed. "Says someone who isn't dating the guy who worships and adores her!" She wore her cooking robe and then took her confectionaries out of the oven.

"Can we just stop talking about this please? I'm here to work, not talk about my life." She started to settle the chairs in their right position.

"Fine. But what does the card say first?"

Lola sighed. "He wants us to have dinner tonight."

Caroline's eyebrow raised and answered in a singing voice. "What did I just say, date already."

"Stop it."

oooooooooo

Lola entered the restaurant, her friend texted her the time and place before she got out of her shift. And so she timed out of work, bid her goodbyes to Caroline, and ignored all the teasing she received when she walked out from their store.

He's a good friend, that's all there is to it, why did people kept pushing them that they should be a couple? He had been lovely, genuinely lovely. But she only treated him like a brother, a best friend. She never thought of them being more than what they were now. Maybe she had a certain bond with someone like that in her past life, a life she forgot, that it has pierced in her personality so much that she still had it until now with her new one.

"Hey." A man with dirty blonde, curly hair greeted him. He had striking features, but not the type she preferred, a lean body, definitely into sports. As to what kind she didn't know, she's known him for years but has never figured out who he really was underneath it all. Talk about seeing but not looking.

She escaped from her thoughts by his acknowledgement. "Hi, did you wait too long?"

"Nah, it's alright." He led her to her chair, went to sit on his own and opened the menu. "So, what will you have?"

"Hmm. Steak."

"Good choice. I'll have the same. And for drinks?"

"Just water."

"Okay then." He signalled the waiter. "Two steaks please, hers well done, mine medium rare. She'll have water and I'll have beer." The waiter beamed and left.

"You know me too well." Lola noticed.

"Of course. I've known you for a long time, haven't I?"

"Yes." She replied. "So, what's the occasion?"

"Oh nothing, just taking you out to celebrate our fifth year…" Lola rolled her eyes. "Of being friends. Relax, will you?" He chuckled unconvincingly.

"Caroline thinks that you and I should be a couple."

"That makes the two of us. But I've already told you time and time again haven't I? Now there's someone who can back me up."

"Oh, sweetie. You know I love you." Lola groaned.

"And I love you too."

"But not the same way as you do. I love you, as a brother, as a best friend."

He looked down. "We could try, you know, who knows? It might work out."

"And what if it doesn't? What happens?"

"We''ll never know if we didn't try."

"I'd rather keep you as a friend than take that risk."

"I never took you for a coward, Lola."

"I'm not." She sighed. "I'm just being rational."

"Nothing about us is rational."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that I love you for so many years. Years, Lola." He tried to keep his voice calm. "And I thought that maybe one day you'd realize that we're right for each other. But you still don't."

"Let's just stop this conversation okay?"

"No."

"Well, I'd rather end it than keep fighting with you. Every time, every single time that we talk about this, we argue. I don't like it."

"If you just agree to—"

"To what? Pretend that I feel the same way as you do? It wouldn't be fair."

"I don't care." He took her hand. "I don't give a shit, as long as you're mine."

"That's the problem, it's all about you, isn't it?" She grumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"All you think and care about is how hard it is for you. What about what I feel? Don't you think this is hard for me?"

"How is it hard for you? I'm the one that's being rejected time and time again!"

"It's hard for me! You keep pushing and pushing, and guess what, it only makes me want to go farther away from you!"

They stopped arguing when the waiter finally arrived with their orders. She said her thanks, and then heaved a sigh. "I can't start a relationship. Not now."

"Why?"

"How can I trust myself to be with someone who loves me, accepts me for me, when I don't even know myself?"

"You know who you are, Lola. You're smart, kind, and beautiful—"

"It's not just that." She started eating, cueing the end of their conversation. He was defeated, and then grabbed a bite as well. Both ate in silence.

oooooooooo

They walked back in silence. She kept looking at the ground, and he looked at the lights.

It was dead silent. It was painful, agonizing.

She hated it.

She didn't want him to keep on waiting for her. It would have been better if he just stopped. But she can't force that, just like he's forcing them to be together. It wouldn't be fair. She wished she had feelings for him other than brotherly or friendship love, she really did, frankly just because she wanted him to shut up about it. But no matter what, she still feels the same way. And it never changed. It probably never will.

She was grateful for him, he was the only one there for her all this years. She was very lucky to have met him, for she really didn't know anyone, even herself. She would have gone mad trying to figure it out all on her own.

He hated it.

After all those years of him helping her out, of supporting her, of taking care of her, she only saw him as nothing but a friend. Well, that was exaggerated, she did say more like a brother or best friend. But he didn't want that, he wanted more. Why wasn't he still enough?

He finally gave in. "Look, I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry." She answered.

"I should be rushing you just because mine is already there. I'll be waiting."

She looked at him.

"I don't want to cause you any more trouble."

"You're not."

"It's just that, I can't force—"

"I know okay?" He held her arms. "I just… I just really love you, you know?"

"Yeah." She whispered.

"And it's okay if you love me as a brother or a best friend. It's better than nothing." He convinced her. But in reality, he was convincing himself.

"I suppose."

"And when you find yourself, I'll be here for you. I'll always be."

She smiled. "I know you will."

"Oh, by the way, your doctor gave this to me. He said it's been weeks since we last visited, he figured you've ran out of it already." He handed her a bottle with liquid inside.

"Oh right, I have actually. Tell him thanks."

"Will do."

They continued to walk, Lola finally grabbed him by the arms and gave him a timid smile. He grinned.

"Well, this is your stop."

She took her key from her bag and then fumbled to open the door. It resisted, so she banged around the lock a few times.

"Maybe you should move to a different house, you know, somewhere less ancient."

"You know I don't have the money."

"I'll lend you some."

"No. You know how I feel about depending on you too much."

"You have for years." He teased.

"Exactly, and it's too much."

"Why don't you move in with me?"

She eyed her, almost glaring.

"What? I won't be doing any funny business, if that's what you're thinking. We can share the rent, if you want."

"Still, no. I've grown to like the place. It's really cozy." Finally the door opened. "Ah, thank goodness!"

"The offer still stands, you know."

"Thanks, but no thanks. Besides, if I stay with you, you'll probably get tired of me."

"Get tired of you?" He scoffed. "Never. It's been five years, and I never got tired of you. Probably never will."

She went inside and turned to him.

"Well, good night then." He hugged her.

"Good night."

* * *

><p>Sorry for the lack of Dramione action there, feel free to boo on me.<p>

Gathered a little hint, didn't you? No?

Review!


	4. Chapter 4

Weston's Café.

That was where Hermione, er, Lola Haze worked.

How did Draco found out? Well, he didn't really hire an inspector. No, that would make him sound like he was obsessed with her.

No, he's not.

Mister Gibbs told him.

Well, after he had asked.

But that doesn't count as too much inquiry, no.

Besides, why should he care for her anyway?

He decided, after half an hour of pacing back and forth, to finally go to the restaurant. Just to observe the place, and the food. Possibly take some home for the ladies of the house. Not her. No.

But it wouldn't hurt to look at her, right?

He finally arrived. It looked decent, typical for a café. It had glass windows, olive themed furniture, and a cosy ambience. He entered, heard the chime ring, and sat himself on one of the vacant places. He looked around, people seemed to like the place. It wasn't too full, but there were a lot of people. Surely, she would never notice him to be here. She would probably be busy, and that would give him time to observe her.

Okay, fine, maybe he did come there to observe her.

"Are you following me?"

So much for going unnoticed.

"Hello there, I didn't see you."

She eyed her, a sort of mockery, as if he's accusing her of being daft.

"What? Can't a man come here alone and want to grab a bite on a café?"

"Well for starters, you've been here for minutes. And instead of looking at the menu you've been looking around as if you're finding someone."

"And you're assuming it's you?"

"You've stopped looking, haven't you?" Touché.

She had on a white top, a brown pencil skirt, and were both covered by a navy blue apron. Very prudent, very Granger.

"Are you done staring?" She put her left hand on her hip.

"I'm-"He chuckled. "I'm sorry. You must think that I'm a complete stalker."

"I'm starting to think that, yes. Cut to the chase, will you?"

"I'm sorry?"

"If you wanted to see me, all you had to do was ask."

"What?"

"Ask me out."

Draco was taken aback. Draco Malfoy, dashing debonair, Witch Weekly's second best bachelor of the year (next to Potter, no surprise there), was initiated by a woman to ask her out. He was dumbfounded.

That, and because it was Hermione Granger who said it.

He'd bet all his wealth that she'd never do such a thing. But she's not really herself, isn't she?

Oh, what the heck.

"You sure?"

"Oh I insist, wouldn't want to cause you any more trouble. Plus, it would make me relieved that someone isn't following me around all the time. Don't even deny the fact that I see you every weekend looking at me as I come by your street."

Oh, she noticed that?

It looked like he's going to have to hide a little better.

She was smirking at him. Since when did Hermione Granger smirk like that?

Must be something she did for Gryffindor's eyes only.

Nevertheless, he could not be any more pleased with it.

"All right, will you give me the honour of going out with me?"

She snickered. "You sounded so formal, I thought you were going to propose!"

"Sorry." He shook his head. How come he's entirely clueless when he was with her?

"No, it's fine. Quite sexy, actually."

Hermione Granger just called him sexy.

How… surprising. Appropriate, but surprising.

"And yes, it would be an honour for me to go out with you sir."

Now that's the Granger he knew.

He beamed.

"Now get the hell out of here if you're not really going to buy anything." She played. She took a napkin from the dispenser in his table, brought out a pen and then wrote on it. She placed it in his table, close to him, and then she gave her one last smirk before she continued back to work. Draco looked at the napkin, it was tempting him, eating him alive.

He took it.

He was going on a date with her.

~.~

Well, first of all, he had to buy a mobile. Or telephone connections in their house. He didn't think he'd need it before, he wasn't planning on interacting with Muggles in the first place when he bought a house in Muggle London. It took him three, agonizing days to wait for the telephone company to get it done in the house. And imagine the shock of his mother when people intruded inside her home.

And what on earth are these numbers for?

He was aware of the functions of a telephone to Muggles, but that did not mean he knew how it was operated, he's not even that interested when he found out. Wizard ways of communication seemed pretty more advanced, he wasn't regressing.

But he felt like a total primitive.

"Wha- What is this sound?" He listened to a monotonous tone that didn't seem to end.

Madam Welsh looked at him, surprised. "Boy, you press the numbers to call."

"Of course, I knew that. The sound seemed odd, is all." He excused. He dialled the numbers, identifying what looked similar between what she wrote and what was in the telephone. When he was done, he listened again, and then there were more beeping sounds. Did he do it wrong? He was about to hung up when he heard a voice.

"Hello?"

"Oh, uhm." He cleared his throat. "Can I please speak to Lola Haze?"

"Yes, this is she."

"Hey, Draco Malfoy here."

"Oh, hi." She replied. "So? Why did you call?"

"Well, I called to give you the details to our-"

"Date, yes."

"Yes, right." He coughed. Luckily he asked Madam Welsh to look for a restaurant they could dine in to, and she volunteered to make them reservations. Bless that woman. "Tomorrow night, at seven. The Piasco."

"The Piasco? Isn't that a fancy restaurant?"

"So I've heard, yes."

"Show-off." She muttered. He laughed, and he heard her giggle through the line as well. "Sure, I'll be there."

"Great. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yes, goodbye!"

"Goodbye."

She hung up. Oh, is he supposed to put it down, too? The conversation was over anyway, so he did the same.

"Got yourself a date, don't you Mister Malfoy?"

"It appears so, yes."

"Don't worry, just be your charming self, and she will fall head over heels for you." Madam Welsh encouraged and then left him alone.

~.~

Just to clarify to himself, he lacked sleep that night because the air in the room seemed to be too drafty, and his bed was a little uncomfortable.

He wasn't excited, of course not.

He waited in their table, even brought a bouquet of roses for her, Madam Welsh's idea. It seemed to be in order, so he did as he was told. He wore his best tux, too. A little over the top, but of course, he knew Hermione Granger wouldn't want someone all grunged up.

Finally, she arrived. She wore a black, halter dress that hugged her waist and flowed to her upper thighs. Like fourth year, he couldn't find any words of insult for her. Well, he hasn't ever since they've met again. Her hair was in a messy bun. She found him, smiled and approached.

"Hello." He stood up and helped her to her seat.

"Hi. Wow, this place." She awed. "So much for a first date, don't you think?"

"Just wanted to make a good first impression."

"You are a complete braggart." She chuckled.

Surprisingly, the date seemed to be a total success. They've had long conversations, he tried his very best to hide those magically related. It wasn't lying, he supposed. Even in the Muggle world, she was still the same. She loved learning, read a lot of books. It was as if he was still talking to Hermione Granger.

"Now, I hate to break it to you, but once we ran out of things to talk about this date is going to be really boring."

He chortled. "Really?"

"Yes, and it's all so over-the-top. How about we get out of here, and I'll show you a real good time?"

Who would've thought Hermione Granger knew better about having a real good time than he did?

He succumbed.

~.~

"Another round over here!"

She shouted to the bartender. They were having liquor, both of them. And the same amount, too. Hermione Granger the stuck-up prig had alcohol tolerance the same as Draco Malfoy. Who would've guessed?

"I didn't think you're that tolerant on alcohol." He shouted amidst the loud music of the bar they have moved to.

"What? This? This is nothing! We're not even halfway across the levels yet!"

"What do you mean levels?"

"Every round we get is stronger than the last, so you better brace yourself! Cheers!" She handed him his drink and their glasses clinked before they drink it up.

Well would you look at that, she actually knew how to have a real good time.

"Okay, time for a break, get up!"

"What?"

"Get up!"

She grabbed him by the hand very nonchalantly, and it shocked Draco to the very core. She led them to the hall. And she danced.

"Woo!"

She swayed her hips and put her hands in the air, she laughed when he just saw him doing nothing. "Why are you still standing? Dance!"

"Oh no, I'd rather not."

"What? You prude! Come on!"

Oh no, she did not just call him a prude? What's happening, it's like their lives are turned upside down. Okay, how does he do it without looking like a fish out of water?

"Oh god please don't tell me this is the first time you're going to dance at an open bar?"

He shrugged.

"Oh no it is! You poor thing! Now, follow me. First you bop your head to the music." She started, and then he followed. Almost awkwardly. "Now feel it, do you feel it?"

"Maybe."

"There, and then your body should follow, you know? Just move to the music."

Well, here goes nothing.

She laughed uncontrollably, holding her abdomen. "That is so terrible! I give up! Just follow some random guy out there! You are hilarious."

Draco was slightly offended, but what can he do? He wasn't used to the place! Not to mention that the air was humid, but he looked around and saw a man dancing closely to a girl, his crotch so close to her back. No, he wouldn't do that.

~.~

"I swear you have the funniest disco dance ever."

"I don't really do that kind of dancing."

They laughed. Draco gave up on the dancing part, and Hermione did not force her anymore. They took the last rounds and decided to leave. He was walking her to her home.

"Oh yeah, what kind of dancing do you do?"

"Waltz, that kind. Ballroom dancing."

"You're sure you're not gay?"

That's the umpteenth time she asked him that. Can't a man be reserved? "No, never."

"Whatever."

"What? Don't believe me?" He dragged her near him, not really thinking of what he was doing. Must have had a lot to drink. He put his hand on her waist, the other taking her hand and waltzed to music Draco hummed to.

She giggled. They swayed on the street, a little ungracefully, but they couldn't care less. She leaned her head to his shoulder, and they became silent. It was a comfortable silence. He could smell the jasmine in her hair mixed with the sweat and musk. He didn't mind one bit.

She looked up to his eyes, searching, piercing through his soul. He looked back with the same intensity, from her eyes to her lips. Her lips. It was so plump, so inviting, so…

Draco was shocked at the contact of Hermione's lips with his. It was tasted like scotch, and every other good feeling in the world. It was brazen, coming from her, not to mention in a public place, but if she didn't care why would he?

He kissed her with the same fervent passion, raising his hands to hold the back of her neck, leaning forward for more access. She hummed, the lips open, tongues moving in perfect harmony. She released, and he was left with so much longing.

"Wow." She said breathlessly. "I'm pretty sure you're not gay now."

"You had to figure it out that way?"

"I guess." She snickered and then pointed. "That's my house, over there."

She puts her arm around his and they walked to her flat. When they arrived, she opened her door and looked back at him.

"You sucked. But surprisingly, I had a really great time."

"I'm glad you did. I'll call you?"

"You better." She winked and then moved to close her door on him.

"Bye."

She made a wave and then closed the door.

Draco turned around slowly, grasping the events of the night. He walked slowly while contemplating. He had a date with Granger. It was unbelievable, with a lot of surprises.

And it was the best date he's ever had.

He sighed, and was shocked by a sudden touch that made him turn around again. In a millisecond, Hermione put her arms around his neck and was kissing him again. It had the same effect on him, sending wonderful shivers around his body.

"Okay, bye."

She sprinted back to her house.

* * *

><p>Thank you for all the reviews and subscriptions to this story! Will try not to disappoint. :)<p>

Comments? Do let me know!


	5. Chapter 5

As he walked back to his mother's house, he recalled the events of the night. It was unexpected, and unusual, but in a good way. Good in the sense that he didn't even know how to explain it. How seriously fucked up was that? He wasn't sure why he was doing it, he just wanted to make sure it was her and then maybe bring her back. Not that he really cared about her or anything. But telling her all those things would make her think that he was a complete lunatic, like possibly Dumbledore when he told her she was a witch before she came to Hogwarts. She had to gain her trust first.

Plus a little fun with the Gryffindor Golden Girl would be interesting.

Without any more deliberation, he had decided to stay on his mother's home even during weekdays. It wouldn't be hard, he could just apparate from there to his office. Privately, of course, Madam Welsh still had no idea about their magical powers. So it would not have to be a problem.

As he walked at the stands, the place where Auror trainings were held, he saw a silhouette, a little petite for a man, slouched in the middle of it. He was going to give that man a good scolding for intrusion of Auror premises.

"Oi!" He shouted, and the man looked at him, his face all too familiar. He sighed, and despite all of his urges not to, he walked near him. "What in Merlin's name are you doing here, Potter?"

"I just wanted some time alone." He replied, sadness adamant in his voice. What's new? "Thinking about Quidditch, and Hogwarts, and Hermione."

"Oh." This again?

"I just miss her presence. I feel really good when she's around. Does someone hug her and kiss her cheek like I do? I mean- I do that to her, you know? She's a natural hugger, Hermione. And she's the only person who makes me calm easily." Harry ranted.

"I'm sure wherever she is, she's fine." Draco responded.

"How do you know that? I -" He retorted. "It's hard, I just want to know where she is, and get her back here. I just want her to be safe. She'll be safe here, with me, like we always were."

"Well as I can recall, you three were always in trouble."

"I know, but its different." He sighed. "We fought for all of this to happen, and now that it has, she's gone. She's missing out on what she fought for."

"Look Potter, I know it's been hard for you. Lo- Granger's gone, and Weasley is still in the hospital, and you're left by yourself. But you have to suck it up. You have to be strong, for them. You can't falter just because the others are not there anymore, you have to keep going."

He did not just have a man-talk with Potter.

"You killed Voldemort, I think surviving another year without your best friends would be a breeze."

"You wouldn't know, you don't have best friends."

Draco paused. This is what he gets for cheering The Boy Who Lived on? How grateful.

"Just think about it, will you? Now get out of here, before the guards see you."

"They wouldn't mind."

"Oh right." He scoffed. "Silly me, Harry Potter is allowed to do anything he wants since he singlehandedly saved our world."

"You're not really helping me here."

"Who says I wanted to help you?"

Harry looked at him sternly, and then his features immediately changed, softening even. A realization. "Of course. Goodbye, Malfoy."

Draco took a deep breath, a conversation with Potter that does not leave to bickering was sucking the Slytherin out of him. It was bad.

~.~

"I demand you give us the remaining five bags of flour today! No, I don't _care_ even if you extract it from bloody Narnia, you will bring them now or you won't be working with us, or any stores in the country! We know people, the right ones. Yes, you should be afraid!"

Lola was inside the office, talking on the phone, or more like nagging and blackmailing, their supply providers about the insufficiency of deliveries. It was an injustice indeed.

"Lola!" Caroline shrieked.

"Did you hear that? That was the sound of my boss, screeching because of your incompetence that I have to put up with! If you're afraid of me, then you might as well say your death wishes now because when she gets a hold of you, you. Will. Be. _Dead._"

After taunting the person on the other line, he eventually surrendered. She felt very proud that she could still give intellectual threats naturally like it was an organ of her body. Her glare, which could've killed the man if she were talking to him face to face, turned resplendent and pleased. "Thank you." She softened, and then put down the phone. She heaved a sigh before coming out of the office. "No need to panic, I finally blackmailed them to bringing the remaining flour today. In fact, I was a little scarier than before."

"No, I don't care about that!" Caroline replied. "I was calling you because of these babies!"

She handed out a bouquet of a dozen yellow, fresh roses wrapped in red velvet paper. They looked entirely perfect that Lola took it from Caroline very gently, as if holding a new born child. How could something be so beautiful? She almost gave it back because she didn't want to contaminate it.

"Where in the universe did this come from?" She whispered.

"It was just delivered here, and the card had your name on it!" Caroline squealed. "Now, I am pretty sure your friend didn't gave that to you because honestly he has no sense of taste and- " She sighed, feeling mushy all over. They both were. "- sensitivity. Now open the card so we'd know who sent it!"

She did as she was told and she made a huge grin as she read the card.

_I had the most amazing time with you. I'd like to do it again sometime._

_DM_

"Who's DM?" Caroline inquired.

"Draco Malfoy."

"Who's that? A new boy, perhaps? What did he mean he had an amazing time with you? _You two had sex?"_

"_Caroline!_" Lola cried.

"What? I wouldn't know! I wonder why? Oh I know! _Because you haven't told me_!"

"I was getting to that, you know I share everything with you."

"Then get to it! Come on, let's go back to the office."

"But, the café-"

"Oh pish posh, they'll ring when they need someone!" Caroline dragged Lola back to the office. Caroline sat first, and then giggled while she patted and empty chair for Lola to sit on. "Start from the very beginning of it all, go!"

Lola sighed and shook her head. "Well, it started on the day I was late for work, he called me by a different name, so I told him it wasn't me and then I took off. The next week, he called me again and apologized, so I told him my real name, and then we had a little chat. He went to the café one time-"

"You didn't show him to me, why? How could you be so selfish! Maybe he's ugly, isn't he? Does he have a flat nose? Zits? A unibrow?"

"No! No! Will you just let me finish?"

"Right." She stopped fidgeting. "Go on."

"Thank you. And then he was looking for me, he was just so innocent, so I told him if he wanted to talk to me all he had to do was ask me out. And so he did, and we had a date."

"Oh how lovely! How was it?"

"It was- " Lola sighed. "Surprisingly fun. We talked a lot, he seemed to be very polite and reserved. We went to the pub, and can you believe that it was his first time there? His innocence was completely hilarious. And then we danced, in the streets mind you. And then we kissed and it was-"

"Was?"

"Oh, it felt so amazing! It was like, like magic! "

"Magic?"

The two turned their heads into the source of the voice.

"Oh hello Lola's friend."

"I have a name."

"I don't care!" Caroline answered excitingly, mocking him. "You're not even supposed to be here, this place is for authorized personnel only."

"Well no one was outside, so I figured I'd come in-"

"You figured? Ha! How very clever of you." She replied sourly.

"Don't be harsh." Lola defended and then looked at him. "You really are not supposed to be here. So what brings you?"

"I was just checking up on you." He looked at them, especially at the bouquet. "I was wondering if we could catch up. It looks like you'll have plenty of stories to tell. And something about magic?"

"She was getting to that, but you had to butt in, which was fine by the way. You're not entirely rude, and won't be accused of trespassing."

"Caroline!"

"Fine." She grunted. "I'll be out front, wouldn't want any more outsiders to get in." She stood up, eyed him and then left.

"She hates me."

"Oh, she hates almost everyone."

"She doesn't hate you."

"She has to, I work with her." She eyed him. "Make it fast, I need to go back there."

"Honestly, I just wanted to check if you were fine."

"Well I am."

"Right." He paused. "So, where are those flowers from?"

"Oh, these? They're from a-" How to say this without hurting his feelings? She found none. Better than a hurtful truth than a comforting lie. "- man I met."

"And he just casually gave you those?"

"Yes, as a thank-you gift."

"For what?"

"For the time we've spent a few days ago."

"I see." He paused again. It was not good. "If I didn't happen to come by and see this, would you have told me?"

No, she thought. "Well I didn't want you to be mad."

"Mad? I'm furious! You're going out with a man!"

"Well of course, because I'm a girl-"

"No, not that!" He scoffed. "You told me you didn't want a relationship!"

"I didn't say that!"

"Or maybe you just didn't want to go with me, is that it?"

For complete jubilance, her day went crashing down, all thanks to him. What a friend he was.

"Don't be so hard on yourself-"

"Don't patronize me!"

"Will you stop shouting?" She pleaded. "I just met him, and we both had a nice time. What's so bad about that? And aren't you glad I'm making more friends? It's like I'm finally starting to get used to this new life that I have." She said after a pause. She reached out for his sleeve. "Don't keep me on a cage; this could be good for me. Who knows I can finally find myself?"

He nodded. "I just want to keep you safe."

"I know, and you've done a splendid job." She stood up and then started to fix his collar. "But you can't always be there for me, I need to do some things alone."

"Like dating a man."

"We've only had one date."

"And it sounds like there will be a next one."

"You don't know that." She started brushing invisible dust out of his jacket.

"Well the flowers are a good sign."

She beamed, but it faded and she looked in his eyes. "You're not furious anymore, are you?"

"Well, I don't have any right to be." It was true.

"Stop frowning, it makes you look ugly." She teased.

"I'm ugly?"

"No!" She laughed. "Just when you grimace, so don't alright?"

He gave in, she knew how to soften him even if it was her own fault why he's aggravated. "I love you, you know."

"How could I forget? You choke me with it. Now leave, before Caroline uses her sarcasm on you again."

"I think she secretly likes me."

"You cannot be serious? Her heart is made of graphite."

"Oh, so she's just generally mean?"

"Your words, not mine." She pushed him out of the office, where she followed.

"About time! I thought you two had sex in there!" Caroline exclaimed, and their customers overheard and looked at her with shock and horror. "What? I said I thought, it doesn't mean they really did it. Nothing to see here, thank you."

"You didn't have to be that loud, Caroline." Lola hissed.

"Well you know me, always the center of attraction. Now, is your lap dog leaving? We have work to do."

"I am actually, thank you for letting me borrow her for a while."

"Whatever, goodbye." Caroline rolled her eyes out of boredom for his manners. He looked at Lola one last time before taking his leave, a chime confirming it.

"You are always so mean to him when he visits us." Lola stated.

"Yes well, I'm not a fan of love-struck puppy dogs yapping at my porch."

~.~

At the end of the day, as they started packing up inside the café, Caroline started interrogating again. "Now, what does this Draco look like? I want an accurate description!"

"You won't let this go, would you? Fine. Hmm, well he has platinum blonde hair, grey but piercing eyes, very hypnotic. His facial features were very aristocratic, so you can say that he is attractive. The stubble in his chin is very cute."

"Well Lola, I must applaud you because if your description and my imagination are accurate, then you've got a great catch! Mind bringing him here sometime, possibly confirming my assumptions?"

"He'd have to call me first."

"Oh, then it won't be long." Caroline replied, her voice shaking, like she was having a heart attack. "Because if we are correct, I think that's him outside."

"Wha-" Lola almost stumbled to the windows, taking a look outside. Caroline was right, it was him. Draco.

"You completely lacked description, Lola. That man is an angel on earth. Feel it." She grabs Lola's hands and puts it in her chest. There was a fast, throbbing sound, like a bongo. "Is this it, the moment that my heart has finally come to life? I am no longer the Tin Woman, am I Lola?"

"I- I-"

"Can I keep him?"

"No!" She said in a heartbeat.

Draco had smiled by the time he saw Hermione, or Lola. She looked shocked, and was blushing. She was probably overwhelmed by the flowers that he gave her. He added a few flora spells on it, until it looked like something a girl would be very much pleased with. The other girl, whom Hermione was with, opened it for him.

"Hi, I'm Caroline. You must be Draco Malfoy."

"Yes, hello Caroline." They shook hands, the woman initiated it.

"Do come in."

"Ah thank you."

Hermione was turned against them, trying to compose herself. She made sure that her hair wasn't messy, but to no avail, it was a lost cause. She fixed her clothes from any pleats and dust. When she felt that she was satisfactory, she chanted 'relax' to herself and then turned to him.

"Draco."

"Lola." He answered politely. "I take it you have received my gift?"

"Oh yes, I did. You didn't have to go through such trouble."

"It was no trouble at all. Did you like it?"

"More than like it, actually. It was so perfect. Thank you so, so much."

"I'm glad you liked it." They smiled at each other, which was enough to fill the silence until Caroline cleared her throat.

"I know you two are having a little moment here, but I can't help but ask, do you have a brother? Because if Lola's going to have you, I'd go for-"

"Caroline!"

"What?"

"Stop. Embarrassing. Me." Lola mouthed.

Draco chuckled. "I'm sorry Caroline, but no I'm an only child."

"Oh, maybe a-"

"Okay, that's it Caroline." Lola cut her. She looked at him apologetically. "So, what are you doing here?"

"I'm personally inviting you for another date, that is, if you-"

"Yes!" The girls replied in unison, Caroline's answer louder. "Yes Draco, I'd love to."

"Splendid, now if I can ask Caroline to borrow you for the day tomorrow-"

"Oh yes! That is no problem, no problem at all! Take her, take her down and have your way with her." They looked at her, perplexed and horrified.

"A whole day?" Lola turned to ask him.

"Yes. That is, if you don't mind spending it with me?"

"Oh, she doesn't mind. She doesn't mind at all! In fact, she'll be very-"Caroline was silenced by Lola's pinch, from which she winced.

"No, I don't mind." Lola smiled meekly.

* * *

><p>So sorry it took long! I'm trying my very best to find time, but I've been working. I will try to update faster next time! Comment and review! x<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

"Draco. Draco darling, wake up."

He groaned. Who in their right mind would disturb his sleep? He pried his eyes open slowly, his vision blurring because of the foreign light after hours of sleep. He let his eyes get used to it and when all became clear, a woman with hair was white as light itself was in front of him.

"What is it, mother?"

"Oh nothing, I was wondering if you have received any news perhaps? From your father, maybe?" Narcissa played with the hem of her handkerchief, clearly anxious.

Draco sighed. "No mother, no letters from him."

"Hm, he must be very busy. He didn't even bother to visit for an occasion such as this. Shame on that man, you must understand him."

"I do." _Yeah right_, he thought. It wasn't new to him.

"Well, I just came because I wanted to be the first one to great you a happy birthday, my love." She kissed his forehead.

"I'm not ten, mother."

"I know. How old are you today?"

"You're my mother, you're supposed to know."

"I'm not quite sure, I'm sorry dearest. 23?"

"Yes."

"Good, I do know. I thought I've already gone bonkers."

_Oh mother, you have no idea._

"So, do you have any plans for today?"

"As a matter of fact," Draco smirked as he remembered his ingenious plan. "I do."

~.~

"Lola? Lolaaaaa! LOLA! PICK UP!"

The tranquillity of her morning was disturbed by the voice on the phone, the intention of actually leaving a message wasn't really there, Caroline just plainly called to shout and nag at her. She groaned and ignored it by continuing to eat her bagel and taking a sip of her coffee afterwards. There was a beep.

"Lola, I know you're up. Don't hide from me! Fine, don't pick up. I just want to say that it feels so lonely here at the café without you-"

_Yeah right_, she thought.

"And! Please please _please _call me as soon as you get back from you and Draco's date, all right?"

She snickered. Another beep.

"Don't skip any details, and I mean none! That includes if you two have sex."

She scoffed and looked at the receiver, appalled. Seriously, what is wrong with this woman? How is she even friends with her?

"It's all you could do for letting me give you a day off, if you don't I'll take a day's work off your salary!"

"As if you even know how much a day's work value is." She muttered to herself. The receiver beeped again.

"Okay, so this will be my last message I promise. Don't forget to shave—armpits, legs, and you-know-where! Smile! And don't talk about books too much, please? You'll bore him to death. All right? I love you babe!"

There were no messages after that. She smiled at the last message. Caroline might be crazy, but she's a great friend. She did what she was told, of course. She wanted to be presentable, and ready. Just in case.

_Oh please, I barely know the man_, she thought. But still, constant vigilance.

She wondered where she got that motto from.

~.~

She was nervous.

She fidgeted, looked at the clock, and then the mirror to look at her reflection, and then on the door. She did that over and over again, like a routine. He said he'd come by at 10.

It was 9:52.

She gazed at herself from the mirror. She held her hair in a French bun. It was hopeless, but it was better than looking like she was slowly eaten by it. She fixed the subtle hints of colour on her eyelids, cheeks and lips for the umpteenth time. Where was he? She looked at the door, it was closed of course. She looked at the clock again.

It was 9:58.

She smoothened her dress: white, silky, the halter knotted at the back of her neck, and ends flowing to her knees. Was she overdressed? She rushed to her room, opened her closet and looked for her cardigan. She has no definite idea what they were going to do. As she walked back, she heard the doorbell ring. She looked at the clock. It was 10.

_On time, impressive_, she thought.

She exhaled a breath to calm herself down before opening the door.

By some divine chance, or the sun was attracted to him as well, there he was. The sun lit up behind him, complimenting the colour of his locks like he was some angel who was here to take her to heaven, now if only he had a halo. He smiled warmly, how does he do this?

"Hello." He said.

"Hello… Draco." She was staring. Completely staring.

"Are you ready? Oh, I brought you these."

From behind his back he presented her a bouquet of white roses. It had the same glory and life like the flowers he had given him yesterday. She definitely needed to know where he got them, hire them for the café, to her wedding, to her burial. She smiled coyly as she received it.

"You know you should stop giving me flowers if you're planning to stop one day, because I might get used to it."

He smiled. "I'll think about it. Shall we go?"

"Wait, quick question. Am I over or under-dressed? I have no clue what we're going to do, I hope I dressed appropriately."

Is she kidding? She looked like she came from the pages of Witch Weekly.

"You look perfect." He offered his arm, which she took. They walked at her patio when she saw a car.

"Is that-"

"Yes, that's mine."

Thankfully with his friend Blaise Zabini's Muggle connections, he had acquired a car and a location for their date in less than twenty-four hours.

"We'll take that-"

"To go to our destination, yes."

"You're not going to kidnap me, are you? Take me somewhere far away?"

"Well, I am sort of kidnapping you from your job today. And we'll be going a tad bit far away from the city, so maybe I am. Are you terrified?" He smirked.

"Me?" She scoffed. "Please. Let's get going. Surprise me."

~.~

It had been a pretty long hour drive, but not boring. She must be entirely amazed about Draco's ability to recognize directions, but little does she know that he casted a destination spell on the car, his hands only held the steering wheel and leaned his feet on the pedals underneath, fascinated with the changes every now and then. Yes, magic can be really handy.

He wondered if she has discovered that she was also capable of magic during the time she has lost her memory.

She pressed a few buttons at the front of the car, and it started playing music. Well he didn't know that trick. She started singing along, her voice a little off-beat, but it reached them, not accurately, but acceptable nonetheless. It was the way that she looked while she sang that caught his attention, her mouth, her lips moving graciously. Her eyes closed as the song moved pitches higher. He chuckled and she looked at him, as if in slow motion, like those girls he'd seen on the telly that Madam Welsh watched, or he must be really tired from all the traveling. Apparition was better, faster. That must be it.

"I know my voice is terrible, but you don't have to laugh at it!"

"No, I'm not." He said. "Your voice is fine. Your face, though, you're really into it."

"Well I liked the song, so… Eyes on the road!" She moved his face swiftly, as if smacking him. "Sorry, did that hurt?"

"No, I should have been more careful." He'd made it to a point to look at her not that long, she might think that he was obsessed with her. "We're here."

"Where? We're in the middle of-"

She was stunned at the sight of mustard-coloured sand and the clear, lucid sea. It was deserted, completely, which was a shame, for the waters moved and hugged the sand and then left, only to come back to it again. The sun made the sea glisten with tiny, bright stars floating on it.

"How did you-"

"I have a friend who owns the property."

"And the sea? Is he the prime minister?"

He didn't know what that was, but he was pretty sure Blaise was not one. He got out of the car, and went to her side to open hers. "No." She got out of the vehicle, almost reluctantly.

"Are you sure? He could make a resort from this scenery."

"I assure you, he's not. Now if you don't mind helping me with some things-"

"Oh of course, what's that?"

"I thought we could have a picnic."

"Aww, how sensitive of you." She teased as she accepted the cloth he handed out. "So we have this beach to ourselves?"

"Yes, unless there are-" He almost blurted out goblins. "-stray animals around, which is impossible."

"What's that?" She pointed at a structure a few yards away from them.

"My friend's beach house, he said it would be all right for us to stay there in case we wanted to rest or clean up."

Her jaw dropped. "Are you sure you and your friends are not part of the mafia? Moguls? Royalty?"

He shook his head.

"Are you one of those corrupted people taking money away from the government?"

"Do I look like someone who steals money?"

"You could be, looks can be very deceiving."

"I'm not really sure how to take that statement, but believe me when I say no."

"Fine, lie to me."

"I'm not lying to you."

"I'm famished, let's have lunch."

They walked a few feet near the sea and put down their cloth and basket. Madam Welsh seemed to have packed a lot in the basket, from fruits to pastries and jams. He'd have to thank her when he came home.

"I believe I haven't been completely honest with you."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Pray tell."

"Today is my birthday." He popped a grape to his mouth.

Her mouth flew open. "Really?"

"Yes."

"And you thought of spending it with me?" She snuggled closer. "Why?"

Why indeed? What's so special with birthdays anyway? He didn't think it was wrong to spend it with her, of all people, instead of being with his mother. That would be too childish of him, and Draco Malfoy was no child anymore.

"I don't know, I-" He looked at her. "I just wanted to."

She grinned. "Happy birthday, Draco."

They were so close, sitting on their legs, knees touching, facing each other. "Thank you."

"I wish you would have told me, I would have gotten you a gift."

"No need." He moved her loose hair to her ears, an act too intimate but he couldn't stop himself from doing. His face moved inches closer when she stood up, took off her cardigan and threw it as she walked away from him towards the shore.

"What are you doing? Where are you going?"

"For a swim!" She started running.

"You don't have any extra clothes!"

"So what?" She shouted as she met the waves, letting it wash her up. The water made her dress stick to her figure making it translucent. And they were tempting him to join her.

"Bloody hell." He muttered under his breath.

"Get out here, birthday boy!"

"Uhm I don't know."

"Prude! Old lady!" She kept teasing. "Pussy!"

His eyes shot open. Pussy? _Pussy?_

He scratched his scalp, thinking. _That's it_, he thought. He groaned and discarded his top. He unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants, and put them down. Thank Merlin for boxers and the privacy of the place.

"What did I get myself into?" He muttered to himself, along with several curses, as he ran to the shore.

She felt like she was watching an underwear commercial in a huge screen telly, or the cinema. Because it was impossible to look that lean and fit without any aid of airbrush perhaps. But there he was, in all his glory, whereas she would look like a wet, baby cat if she stood beside him.

"Oh shit!" He spat. "It's cold!" He started paddling. "Come on."

"Where?" She asked.

"I'm going further so the coldness will ebb away. Come on."

"Uhm, no thanks."

"Why?"

"I- uhm, can't swim."

"Really?"

She nodded.

"You're really peculiar you know? Dragging me into the water but you can't swim? Come on, I'll take you."

"I happen to like dancing around the borderline of danger, thanks very much. You're not going to drown me, are you?"

She may have lost her memories, but she still looked for trouble. He didn't have to figure out where she got it from. "I don't think that's possible." He turned away from her. "Hold on to me."

She slowly moved reluctantly, but the waves were drifting her closer to his frame, making her chest land on his back like she her life depended on it. She tensed as she held his perfectly chiselled shoulders. The closeness of their contact should have been illegal. "If I drown and die, I will haunt you for the rest of my life."

He only chuckled and then moved towards the deeper parts of the water. As the feeling of sand under her feet diminished, her hold on Draco tightened.

"I'm pretty sure your nails have dug into my skin by now."

"I'm sorry."

He purposely took her hands off of him and then moved about two feet away from her.

"What- What are you doing?"

"You'll be fine, just flap your arms and legs."

"No! You said you wouldn't drown me!" The panic was obvious in her voice.

"I wouldn't!" He laughed. "I'll be here when you can't do it, come on just try."

"No."

"Scared? Prude. Old lady."

She huffed and then paddled her extremities as hard as she could.

"I –I think I got it."

"Good, keep going."

"No, I don't want to anymore. It's hard."

"But you just said-"

"I'm going to die-"

"Relax a bit."

"-my body buried in the middle of nowhere-"

"Calm down."

"I-I'm going to drown, the water's eating me alive!"

"Keep paddling!"

"No!" Her hands wrapped around him the moment she realized she couldn't keep moving. She could feel his chest humming with laughter along with the water, both were mocking her. "Don't you _ever _do that again! I could've died out here!"

"Fine, sorry."

"You're an arse."

"You called me corrupted, now I'm an arse?"

"A corrupted arse."

"Come on now, you're safe aren't you? I was just having a laugh. Okay let's try again, this time I'll be close, if you feel like you're weighing down hold me all right?" He slowly detangled her grasp on him. "Relax, don't panic. Just float and paddle yourself upward, that's it."

"I think I got it."

"Are you sure this time?" He raised an eyebrow on her direction.

"Don't underestimate me." She kept moving until she was one with the water. She laughed heartily. "I got it! Hahahaha!"

Their gazes locked and the mocking waves ruffled and pushed them closer to each other. The coldness of the water was slightly averted as hot breaths, and then lips combined. The kiss sent warm tingly feelings from the tip of their fingers and toes. Their limbs tangled together, her arms around his shoulders, her legs around his waist, and his arms around her torso. She feathered kisses in his jawline to his neck, and he could've sworn her lower extremities gripped him closer.

"I think we should get back to shore." Draco said before he lost control.

~.~

They fumbled to open the door of the beach house only to find that it was open. How-? The question instantly left his mind as she started attacking him with soft, sweet kisses, her lips feeling delicate against his. He moved them towards the room walking backwards when Hermione broke away from the kiss. "Oh my God!"

He turned around. "What the- fuck you Blaise! What are you doing here?"

"Draco? What are you doing here?"

"I told you I'd borrow your beach house this week!"

"Ohhhh, I thought it was next week. I needed a little break from work, you see. Oh I almost forgot, happy birthday mate. I'd hug you, but you're wet and almost naked and- is- is that?" Blaise stuttered at the sight of a very familiar face.

"This is _Lola Haze_. Lola, my friend Blaise Zabini, the owner of the house."

Draco glared at his friend, cuing him to shut up. Blaise couldn't even say a word for almost a minute but then escaped his train of thoughts. "I apologize; it was very rude of me to stare. But with a face and… never mind. Blaise Zabini, very nice to meet you _Lola Haze_." He shook her hand, which she reluctantly gave. "Say Draco, how about some clothes? Come with me to one of the rooms. Make yourself at home, _Miss Haze_."

"O-okay." She replied softly.

As they closed the door on her, Blaise took his wand and casted a Muffliato. "Did I just see you almost shagging Granger? Hermione Granger? Hermione the missing since the war Granger?"

"Blaise-"

"Fucking hell Draco, have you lost your mind? You have no idea what you're getting yourself into!" He started rummaging for actual clothes for Draco to wear. "And Lola Haze? Where the fuck did that come from?"

"That's her name now."

"I'm sorry?"

"She's lost her memories. That's why she hasn't returned. That's why she's not trying to hex me. That's why we're-" He shook his head. "Fuck."

"Fuck is definitely right. You should have just told her or brought her to Potter!"

"I can't believe I almost shagged her."

"You're not seeing the point here." He threw the clothes to the blonde's face. "What exactly are you planning with her, Draco?"

"I don't know, I was just having a little fun-"

"You fucktard."

"Why are being so worked up about this? She's none of your business."

"Say for yourself!"

"That's enough!" Draco snarled. "I will not discuss this with you any further. You will not tell a soul, and I will take care of this. You understand me?"

"How exactly do you plan on taking care of a memory-impaired war heroine-"

"_I don't know!_ But you better not get on my way. I will handle this. _Just shut up._"

Blaise sighed. "I'm trying not to think of the worst thing you could do, but we are Slytherins. Do whatever you want, but remember this: whatever your ingenious plan is, I have a feeling it will end badly."

"Yeah thanks a lot, mate." He replied sarcastically as he buttoned his shirt. "You have another shirt there?"

"Yeah." He threw another. "What for?"

"For her, idiot. You'll let me borrow your wand, will you?"

"Fine." Blaise handed his wand to Draco. He conjured it to a smaller size, one that would fit her. "Got any girl's underwear from your escapades left here?"

"I'm not like you."

"I'll take that as a no. Remember, don't act so obvious. And keep your wand."

* * *

><p>I made it longer! Has someone noticed that? No?<p>

All credits to JK Rowling, none of the characters are mine.

Review! x


	7. Chapter 7

Draco opened the door and saw her still completely wet, standing in the middle of the floor. Her dress still clung to her body, her curves flattered, the wonderful slopes shown in a silhouette, and he could almost see everything. It was completely natural for him to react in some unusual ways, he was a man. He had needs. And to think he almost shagged her! Somehow he was still confused if he would be pissed or thankful that Blaise was there. It was bound to happen, after what they were doing while they were in shore. He had a bad feeling in his stomach, and he could not figure out if it was regret or just the _other_ one.

"I uhm-" He tried to remain calm as he handed out the conjured clothing, even forcing his eyes away from her body. "Blaise found these for you, you should change, for you might get a cold."

"Thanks. Where's the lavatory?"

"Hall on the right, first door to the left." Blaise said. As she left, they waited for her to close the door. "How come she's not hexing you?"

"I told you, she doesn't remember anything about Hogwarts, or Potter, or the war."

"I know that, but kissing her like that? I thought she was a prude. How'd you do it?"

"I didn't insult her about her teeth, hair or blood heritage when I first saw her."

"It took you years to figure out that was a bad idea. You've got another start with her, now you can do things right."

"Why should I?"

"Oh please, any bloke would know that all your teasing was another way of showing your little school crush on her."

"It was nothing but a lack of judgement."

"Right." Blaise teased. "And her body, holy mother of Merlin, I'd love to see what's under those-"

"Don't even think about finishing that sentence." Draco glared.

"Easy there, she's not your property. So do you want me to leave or what? Want to continue your unfinished business?"

"Yes, and no, not about the business. I don't think I'll go there, I haven't got a clue what I'm going to do."

"You're such an idiot sometimes, diving into something without preparation."

"I just happen to be very spontaneous, mate." Draco sighed. "You just had to ruin the moment didn't you?"

"So you _do_ want to finish it?" Blaise said. The conversation ended as soon as Lola came back from the rest room. "Ah! So, I believe we all began at the wrong, awkward foot. I'm Blaise Zabini, I'm a real-estate agent." He extended his hand. Draco wondered where Blaise got that idea of a job from.

"I'm Lola Haze, writer-slash-waitress. Look, about what happened-"

"Oh that! I think I should be the one to apologize, I ruined a moment between you and the birthday boy right here." He said as he patted his friend's back. Draco wanted to strangle his friend as a personal birthday gift to himself. "Besides I was about to leave when you two came in. I've got clients to meet. So I better be off, wouldn't want to keep them waiting. It was nice to meet you, Lola. I'll see you Draco." He winked at Draco and left.

Draco sat at the couch and Lola was standing, or better yet fidgeting in the middle of the living room.

"That was… completely embarrassing." She said.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"It was the first time he saw me, and I was sucking your face."

"I was doing the same, so I'm also at fault here."

"I think I'm going to die of shame whenever I see him."

There was an awkward pause, but then she started laughing, hysterically. Her eyes were tearing up and she held her tummy as she could not control her laughter. Draco looked at her curiously. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." She wiped the little trickle of tears in her eyes. "That was so hilarious."

He chuckled. "You have an odd sense of humour."

"At least I have one."

"Are you saying that I don't?"

"Are you guilty?"

"Do you want to sit down? I feel uneasy that you're just standing there."

"Oh right." She walked and sat beside him. She turned to her side to face him and then started to fidget again like a child. "I'm sorry, for what happened. Before we got caught by your friend, I mean."

"Oh." He said. So she didn't want anything to happen after she initiated the kiss? Okay, maybe it was a mutual thing. But the tighter grab was not his idea. And now she's backing out and apologizing. Figures. She was still a prude somehow. Not that he was disappointed or anything.

"I mean I don't want you to think that I'm some sex opportunist. We've only had two dates, amazing ones. I do, somehow, want that to happen." Her cheeks turned bright red; she was probably appalled by her own words. Draco, however, became more and more amused by the revelation. "Just not that instantly."

Ah, same old prude Granger. Adorable, but still a prude.

"I don't want you to think that I'm only after the sex as well." Is he? Oh well, it got out of his mouth already, there was no point of taking it back. "You are a very interesting woman, Lola. And I'd like to know you better. We could know about the physical bits some later time."

She laughed. "Thank you, I'll take your word for it. Try not to make out with me by the next hour, will you?"

~.~

Thank Merlin he didn't promise her anything, because then he'd break it and it's only been minutes. Not that he actually cared about the importance of keeping promises, who believed in that crap anyway? He went back into concentrating on her plump lips and hot breath as they resumed their kiss fest on the couch. So much for trying.

It all started when they talked about little things about themselves.

"Well, I hate peaches. They have this weird, wet, juicy, sticky feeling." Lola said.

"I like collecting rocks." He replied. Her brows furrowed. "Rocks with unusual surfaces, I mean."

"Like fossils?"

"Something like that." What is that?

Her face contorted a bit in defiance, and then she sighed sort of in defeat. "Look, if this is going to continue, I want you to know something about me."

"Oh." He replied. Was this it, the day she' tell him about her illness. "What is it? You don't have syphilis don't you?"

"Does anyone have syphilis in this lifetime?" She replied.

"I don't know, we'll find out after you tell me."

"I do not have syphilis!" She swatted his arm and then went back to being sullen. "Although I am sick, it's not fatal, but it's really big. And I think I shouldn't be keeping this from you if this is going to happen."

"Go on."

"You see, I – I'm sort of sick, in the brain."

"You're crazy?"

"No! Maybe? I have amnesia. I don't know anything about my life before I came here in London. One day, I woke up in the middle of the street and it was night time, and I didn't even know my name or where I lived. I had to start from scratch, everything I have right now I had to work so hard to get. It's not much, but it's what I'm left with. I had to continue my life even if I had not the slightest inkling where to begin, or where to find it."

Slowly, he moved closer to her, the energy between them from the sea was back again. He curled the tousles of her hair in his finger, and then softly grazed his hand to the arc of her neck, smooth to his touch. It moved to her collarbone, and then moved rightwards, hypnotized with the creamy colour of her skin and was out of his trance when she giggled. How cute.

"Do I look like the type of person who runs away just because I hooked up with someone who's bonkers?" He teased.

"So you don't mind?"

"That's why they're called the past, Lola. You're not supposed to look back and dwell on it. You have to move forward. And if you asked me, you're doing a pretty good job at it. This is you now, and I like what I see, and I intend to stay longer. If you'd let me."

His hands groped further and caressed the slope of the sides of her breasts and then downward, trying very _very_ hard to ignore that her breaths have become short and the shiver that waved through her, because if he didn't he couldn't control himself. He was a pleaser. Another sound came out of her when he smoothened his hands on the curve of her waist, this time a moan, and it shot right back to his body, this time sending him shivers, and his blood moving downwards.

"I'm really glad that I've met you after my accident." She said softly. "Because I would've regretted forgetting about you."

If she only remembered who he was, she wouldn't be saying those things. So he shutted her up before she could say another stupid thing about how glad she is she met him, or how amazing he is, or how he was so kind to disregard her memory being gone. Because all of it were lies, lies that he himself fabricated for her to realize.

But the way she responded the kiss with her soft lips with such fervour, the way she held on to his arms and then to his hands, the way she tangled her fingers with his, he felt like she meant it. He felt like he could get used to it, that the walls he worked so hard to build was falling down in the hands of the memory-charmed brightest witch of their age.

He was a in deeper than he thought.

* * *

><p>Soooooooo sorry for the late update! And sorry if it's a little short!<p>

Got a lot of things to do at school, I even come home at 9pm everyday. It sucks! But I'll make time. My hiatus is over. :)

Maybe if you guys sent me reviews I'll update fast. Hahaha! Keep 'em coming! I love hearing from you all! x


	8. Chapter 8

"What?"

The people at the café looked at the source of the scream, who was the owner shouting at her co-worker. It seemed as though she did not do her job well. If only they knew.

Caroline dragged Lola to the back office and slammed the door shut. "How on earth could you two _not have sex?_"

Lola was slightly amused, trying to hide the smile on her face. "Is that really all you think about?"

"Yes! I mean—Come on, Lola! Have you seen the man you're dating? Or has your eye sight gone bad?"

"It's perfectly fine, thanks."

"Then how can you not want to do him! I mean if you weren't my friend I would've taken him away from you to the nearest cabinet or dark alley and do the deed with him!"

Caroline's exasperation was completely real, Lola finally gave up her bars and spilled her laughter.

"Wha-? Why are you-? Don't laugh at me!"

"But you were so funny!" She said through her chuckles.

Caroline pouted and then started to grin. "What can I say? I'm sleazy!" She started laughing as well. "But seriously now, why? Are you getting cold feet? Did he at _least _get to second base?"

Lola blushed bright red. "Well… No."

"Make out?"

"Yes."

Caroline squealed like a pig being brought to slaughter. "I knew it, I knew you couldn't resist his damn charm! But how come it didn't get to home run?"

"Because! We've only had two dates! I don't slag around, Caroline."

"I'm sorry, _mother_. And he was okay with it? Normally men would be so pissed."

"That's what surprises me too! He wasn't upset or furious that I wanted to slow things down. In fact, he was all right with it." Lola said. "I also told him about… my sickness."

Caroline's eyes widened. "Oh no, do you think that's why he doesn't want it? He thinks you're sick and freaky?"

"No! I am certain that's not what he thinks. I'd like to think he's better than that."

"Yes well, I'd like to think he's great in bed but you don't see me trying to get a move on with him. It's about time, I bet you've got cobwebs on your chastity belt on your lady parts."

"Cobwebs!"

"Well do you remember if you're a virgin or not?"

"I… I don't." Lola said softly. "I have some other news, though."

"What's that?"

"Well I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, but… I've been having these dreams."

"Wet dreams?"

"No! Gods Caroline! I don't know, but I keep seeing Draco in it."

"Ah so it is wet dreams!"

"Still no! There were a lot of things that were different. For one, he was younger. And he kept, I don't know, grimacing at me? It's like he hates me. Like I'm some sort of abomination."

"Hmm, that is peculiar." Caroline replied. "How long has this been going on?"

"Ever since our first date. I mean I know I shouldn't overthink but it's been recurring lately."

"Oh! How about we go to this tarot card reader I know?"

"You are not going to involve me in your voodoo fetish!"

"Madam Tousquan could interpret your dreams!"

"Come on Caroline, be logical. There's no such thing as magic!"

~.~

Draco snarled at the sight of a messy mop of black hair with spectacles.

"You're late, Potter. We were supposed to go to the site of the Girtwick raid!"

"Sorry, personal news." Harry kept touching his things, looking for anything to do.

"Not that I'm concerned, but you seem to be off today."

"I'm confused. I have a lot of feelings going on."

"Ugh, you sound like a girl—"

"I'm relieved and bewildered and I might be going out of my mind!" Harry shouted but then cooled down by the next second. "Ron woke up."

"Well it's about time he got up from his beauty sleep."

Harry snorted at Draco's comment and continued. "But it was only for a short time. And he was petrified, he kept shouting. He grabbed me by the arms and said that someone took her and that I had to find her."

"Who?"

"I don't know, but I'm guessing it was Hermione."

Draco stiffened. "Oh. How would you know?"

"During the battle, they were together, finding the last of the horcruxes and then they would destroy them. They went to the Chamber of Secrets and took the fangs of the basilisk and they did it there." Harry paused. "I didn't even get to see them during the war, I was so focused on killing Voldemort. By the end of it I just saw Ron lying, sleeping. At least he was alive."

"Are you sure that, uhm, Granger is still alive?"

"Certainly. Her body wasn't found."

"What if she died somewhere else?"

"No, she can't. She's strong and smart… and I steadfastly refuse to believe that." Harry continued. "Besides, after what Ron said when he woke even for a short bit of time, I know that Hermione's alive somewhere. If only I knew where to look first. She could be anywhere."

"Yeah, anywhere." Draco muttered.

"I'm sorry for rambling on you, by the way. I know it doesn't really interest you."

"Well my life is completely boring right now, so I could resort to listening to you."

"This shouldn't go often, the next thing you know I'd think of you as more than a colleague."

"You mean like a lover? I prefer women, Potter."

"I meant a friend you bigot." Harry chuckled nervously.

"Oh look how cosy we are, you laughing at my joke. Yeah well, don't get too comfortable."

"I know. This is bad."

"Terrible."

"So, about the Girtwick raid…"Harry said.

~.~

_Slowly but firmly, Draco brought her closer to him like she was a vulnerable child that he needed to take care of. His gentle smile was enchanting, and she was spellbound. She couldn't help but oblige. Once they were inches close, his breath felt hot on her face and made her hot in different places. His arms held her safe at her waist, and she could not help but raise her arms around his neck, almost about to dance._

_His thumb circled around her flesh, sending a wonderful surge of energy inside her. She hummed at the sensation, how does he do it? Like a lifesaver, her hug tightened, feeling his well-chiselled body. And by the next millisecond, she could feel him kissing her from her earlobes to her jaw to the hollow of her neck. She shivered in a good way, and then when his lips came back to her earlobes he whispered something._

"_Filthy little mudblood."_

Lola woke up feeling unsatisfied and curious at the same time. Mudblood. It sounded peculiar, not exactly foreign to her ears, but she felt a little off. Draco meant that for her?

She looked at her clock, it was 3:05am. She shrugged it off, hopefully forgetting it by morning, and went back to sleep.

* * *

><p>So sorry for the late update! I know, this chapter sucks, no Dramione contact whatsoever! Well at least a few things were revealed, so dun dun duuuuun! Until the next chapter! Thanks so much for the reviews and subscriptions, I appreciate them all, really!<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

"Well, look who decided to show up to work today!" Caroline said sarcastically. "Are you going to start coming in late to work now? Because I could change the opening hours, because it's such a shame how the owner arrives earlier than the worker."

"I am so sorry, Caroline. I overslept. It was irresponsible of me." Lola replied.

"Nah, I was just messing with you. In fact, this all feels very fresh to me. I get to open up my own shop!" Caroline laughed. "You look like you needed the sleep too, you alright?"

"I'm fine, it's just that I had the strangest dream last night."

"What happened?"

"Well." Lola sat on one of the stools. "I was with Draco in a dream."

"Is it a sex dream?"

"No. I don't even know how to categorize it. It started so well, and then in the end he called me something. I didn't know what it meant."

"What was it?"

"Mudblood."

"He called you mudblood?"

"Who did?"

Lola's friend arrived unexpectedly, which made them both jump in fright.

"Oh my god! Haven't you heard of knocking, you primitive?" Caroline said, exasperated. "Get some manners, will you? Bloody hell."

"Sorry. Who called you that, Lola?"

"Nobody did. It was just a dream."

"That means your memories are slowly returning, the potion's supposed to-" He cut his sentence. "The medicine must be starting to work now."

"After years? About time." Caroline remarked. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just checking if she's doing all right."

"Well she is, fine and dandy as she can ever be. Anything else you need from her? Because we're going to open soon."

"I hope you don't mind if I talk to her for a while?"

"I do mind actually."

"Come on, Caroline. It's okay. I'll get back to you soon enough." Lola said.

"Fine. Just hurry will you? Wouldn't want to miss any valuable customers today."

"Alright, thanks." The two stepped out of the café to sit at the tables outside. "So, what's up?"

"Nothing, I told you, I was just checking if you were alright. You look like you don't, though." He chuckled. "I have impeccable timing, I suppose. What's bothering you?"

"It's nothing, I just had a dream last night, took a while to sleep. And then the next thing I know I'm already late for work. I promise, I'm okay. How are you?"

"Oh you know." He answered, somewhat defiantly. "Are you free tonight? Let's go have some fun. You need it."

"I suppose so." Lola shrugged.

"Great! I'll pick you up after work. Well, I should go. Caroline might get madder. After work?"

"After work." Lola smiled meekly.

"You and Draco meeting tonight?" Caroline asked Lola as she puts the money they've earned for the day away.

"No. He hasn't called in a while."

"Oh. Because of what happened?"

"Idunno, it wasn't a big deal to me." She sighed. "Besides, I'm going out with C later anyway."

"You're dating two guys at once? That's very tricky. And very naughty of you!"

"No!" Lola chuckled. "We're just friends."

"And you and Draco?"

"Well, I'm not so sure. He's different."

"Completely! I've never seen anyone like him before. He looks like he's from another world! In a good way of course." Caroline added. "His hair…"

"His eyes…"

"His bum."

"Caroline!"

"And what, you haven't noticed?" Caroline raised her right eyebrow. "Honestly Lola, the man's a god on earth!"

"Not to mention that he's really nice. I don't think he could even hurt a fly." Lola grinned.

"So how was your day?" Lola's friend asked as the waiter poured their champagne. They were in a fancy restaurant, and Lola felt completely underdressed.

"Oh you know, family business stuff. Father's making sure I know every nook and cranny about it, it's crazy. He's crazy."

"At least you have a father."

"Oh come on, lighten up! How was your day?"

Lola shrugged. "Pretty much the same thing every day."

"You haven't done a lot of writing lately." He sipped from his glass. "No inspiration?"

"No time is more like it. I should abandon that slash on my occupation and be just a waitress."

"I told you a million times, with my money you don't even have to work."

"All I have to do is marry you, huh?" Lola replied sarcastically.

"In a heartbeat." He replied with an air of confidence. "You could just stay at home. You'll have all the time in the world to look for inspiration and write."

Lola sighed. "You're not really helping, you know?"

"Help you with what? You're not even telling me anything! You just say fine, or it's nothing. What am I supposed to make up with that?"

"Don't shout, we're in public." She whispered.

"I'm not shouting. So, how was Mister Fancypants with the flowers?" He crossed his arms over his chest. "Did he call you back yet?"

Lola cleared her throat and drank some champagne. "No, not as of yet."

"He must have given up already. I told you, he was no good. He must have thought it was a one-time thing."

"Are you implying that I'm the type of woman that men would consider as a one-time thing? Because that's how I'm interpreting it."

"No, I meant that as an insult on his part."

"Well, it's an insult on me as well. You're being a pig. I am this close to leaving you here." She made a gesture with her thumb and index finger in anger. "You know, I'd rather spend time at home, wondering why on earth hasn't Draco called me yet than listen to you blabbering—"

"Wait, what?"

"With your big, obnoxious mouth and your massive ego—"

"Did you just say Draco? What's his last name?"

"I wasn't finished talking yet!"

"No, answer me Lola!" He grabbed her by the arm across the table tightly. And people around them started to notice. "What's his last name?"

"Is there a problem here, miss?" A waiter approached and asked. "Sir? Would you mind letting go of the lady?"

"Don't worry, I was just leaving." Lola released herself from his grasp, and stormed off. She didn't even tell him Draco's last name. It's not like he had to know, it was none of his business. But the terror that formed in his eyes made her a little bothered, which she easily shrugged off due to her anger towards her friend. At least he was a friend.

Harry Potter must have completely lost his mind, because Draco saw him open one shelf to another, not to mention pace around his area, and just threw everything he could possibly find in his bag. There must have been an extension charm on it, because he's put a lot of things in there.

"Are you cleaning your desk, Potter? About time." Draco said.

"I'm going to leave for a few weeks, here's my share of the reports." Harry stacked papers on Draco's desk. "They're all done, all you have to do is check if there are mistakes."

"A few weeks, are you insane, Potter? We're in the middle of a case here!" Draco replied. "And where the hell are you going?"

"I don't know, I'm going to look around the places nearby where the war happened."

"Like the Forbidden Forest? Potter, are you going camping? Because now's not the good time to take your leave—"

"Ron woke up again today. He woke up screaming."

Draco was shocked. "What?"

"But it was only for just a moment, and what was most terrifying about it was that he was screaming for Hermione. He kept saying, 'You have to find her, find her Harry!', and I knew I had to do something." Harry zipped his bag closed and picked it up. "I'm sorry, Malfoy. I have to do this."

"Potter, stop! Stop! Be rational about this!" Draco caught up to Harry as he walked fastly. "You can't just go and leave. You need a plan! You don't even know where to begin looking for her!"

"I don't care, Malfoy. All I know is that she's out there, and she needs to come home." Harry replied. "This is where she belongs, with us. I don't care how long it takes, I'm going to find her and bring her back here." Harry entered the Floo Network. "Bye, Malfoy."

He disappeared in flames before Draco could even reason him out of it. He was almost about to blurt out about Hermione Granger to him. 'Oh guess what, Potter? I found your friend! She's doing fine, but she's in the Muggle world and she's a waitress that has memory loss!'.

No, he had to find out what made her this way before he tells Potter. Maybe the hero needed a little time off anyway. Draco figured it was a good decision not to tell Potter about it until he knew what was going on with her head. Let the man wander off in the woods for a while. He started to doubt if it was still a good idea.

Speaking of which, he should call her tonight.

* * *

><p>Hello everyone! Sorry it took me so long to update! I'm on semestral break and so I hope I could catch up on some writing. Let me know what you think of this chapter! :D<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Draco was starting to get the hang of using the Muggle phone contraption. He had to use it whether he liked it or not, for Potter went scavenger hunting for Hermione Granger who in reality is in Muggle London and has no memory of her past. He tried to think of the easy and most logical step to take.

He couldn't think of any.

If he went to follow Potter, no one will be left to do their job. Draco actually wanted to keep this, it was the only thing he had for himself where he didn't have to depend on the family fortune. And even if he did follow him, what would Draco do? Admit that he knew where Granger was? It's not as if Potter will actually believe him. He'd probably think it was a lousy, terrible joke.

If she told Lola about all of this, she might think she's going crazy. She already has so many things to think about, especially where her memories have gone.

What's bothering him though is how did Granger get to the Muggle world and lost her memory? With power such as hers, she could have figured out she had magic a long time ago. Maybe whatever spell that was casted to her made her lose not only her memory, but also her magic. Only someone powerful could do that. Someone powerful and dark.

It would be too risky for him to reveal all those things to her, because someone might be keeping tab on her all this time just so she couldn't go back. But why her? Why not Weasley or Potter? Potter seemed to be the root of all problems, why do this to her instead?

Potter was too valuable, too well-known that if he went missing, it would be a complete mess. The entire Wizarding world would go bonkers. On the other hand, if it was Weasley, it would have made the man basically useless. Not only because of his low intelligence, but he was also a pureblood. He was born and raised in the Wizarding world. If he was brought to the Muggle world, he would be left with nothing. He would be lost at the most simple things, like Draco was while using the telephone.

He had to find out how this happened to Lola, and the person who did this, before he could think of a solution.

He hoped Potter would do alright out there. The man was lucky, he'll be fine.

Draco dialed her number and waited for an answer.

"Hello?"

"Hello Lola, it's me Draco."

"Oh thank goodness you called." Lola said with a sigh of relief.

"Why? What's wrong?" Draco asked.

"Nothing, just—"she huffed. "I've had a very bad day."

"Having trouble at work?"

Lola slouched on her couch, her head faced the ceiling. "Have you ever had the feeling that you are not where you're supposed to be? That you are not doing what you're supposed to do?"

"I think I know the feeling."

"Not only did my memories leave me, but I think a part of me as well. I don't mind having a lot of money or luxuries, I am perfectly contented with what I have now. But there's still something missing. Something very great."

"Mmhm." Draco stood from his seat and grabbed his wand.

"And it's affecting me very greatly, I mean I haven't been writing anything because I just feel so uninspired. And you know that feeling that you're so bothered about something but you don't know what? It sounds pretty stupid but that's what I feel right now and— sorry, someone's at the door, I'll be right back."

Lola opened her door only to be surprised to see Draco. "What? How did you get here so fast?"

"I ran?"

"You're not panting? And I was just in the middle of talking to you and you just left?"

"I figured you needed someone to talk to in person?"

She blushed. Draco smiled. "Am I forgiven?"

Lola chuckled. "Get in, you."

"You didn't have to come over here." Lola said. They were drinking the tea she made. "We could have just stayed talking on the phone."

"I wanted to." Draco looked at her. She was blushing again as she smiled. "I know this must be hard for you. I can't imagine waking up and not knowing how to continue your life with no idea where to begin."

"I had to." Lola replied. "I can't keep dwelling on something I don't even remember, so I kept going. But that doesn't mean that I don't want to find out about it anymore. It's my life we're talking about here. And I want to remember it, all the good and the bad."

Draco thought about all the good and bad memories Hermione Granger would have. A family, happiness at the discovery of her magic, friends with Harry Potter, and outstanding grades. The bad would be the prejudice she's been through for being so different in the Muggle world, and being a Mudblood in the Wizarding world. It's as if she didn't really belonged anywhere. Draco was one of those people who made her feel that way.

"You haven't told me about the time you lost your memory. What was it like?" Draco asked.

"Well, I woke up. And the first thing that came into my mind was that everything was too bright, like I've been sleeping for a long time. When my vision became clear, I was so confused. I didn't know where I was and then it finally kicked in that I had nothing to recall finding the answer." Lola's eyes started to tear up. "I felt so empty and lost, it was so depressing."

"I bet you felt all alone." Draco grazed her cheek softly with his thumb. "You are so strong."

"I couldn't have barely made it, I almost lost my sanity. If it weren't for—"Lola gasped and grunted. She slammed her palm on her forehead. "I am so ungrateful."

"What's going on?"

"I had a fight with my friend earlier. I snapped at him, and I shouldn't have. He was just concerned at me." She shook her head. "I'm so stupid. After all he did for me, he was basically the one who found me and took care of me."

Draco was curious. This could be the answer to all his questions. "I'd like to meet this friend, if that's all right with you?"

"Well, we're kind of having a falling out." Lola pouted. "It's my fault. I have been a crappy friend."

"I'm sure he'll easily forgive you."

"Why would you want to meet him in the first place? I'm pretty sure he's going to be a prick, after all I've done to return the favor."

"Because if I weren't for him, I wouldn't have found you."

Lola smiled and then slowly brought her face closer to his, kissed him softly. Draco was surprised at the action. He didn't mean for it to sound so cheesy, but it apparently did to her. He kissed her back, her scent reeling him in. The longer they kissed, the more fervent it had become.

Draco had to release himself to gasp for air and rested his head on her shoulder, only to start kissing it to her neck. She sighed at the contact of his lips. She smelled and felt so good, his hands grabbed her closer, feeling the curve of her waist. Her hands wrapped around him, she whispered his name. And then he snapped, like waking from a dream.

Draco stopped himself from going any further, his mind spinning. He raised his head and recollected himself. The moment had to end, to his dismay.

"What's wrong?" Lola asked.

What was wrong? There was a smart, beautiful woman in front of him and now he decided to stop?

Because before she was Lola Haze, before their dates and passionate kisses, she was first and foremost Hermione Granger. The girl he studied with at Hogwarts and called Mudblood, the girl who got tortured at his own home.

It was very wrong.

* * *

><p>Thanks for everyone who favorited and gave reviews for this fic, I enjoy reading all of them. I really liked the observations and theories. Well here's another chapter, I hope you all liked it and let me know what you think! :D<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

Talking to Draco made Lola's day yesterday turn from bad to great. They ended up chatting all night, maybe some kisses every now and then, but it didn't go too far. Draco would end it soon enough before things got intense. At first, Lola felt offended. She wasn't that unattractive, was she? But Draco assured her that was not the case; he just wanted to take things slow between the two of them. And she was alright with that.

As long as it didn't move at such a glacial pace, of course.

He also persuaded her to make amends with her friend. He didn't have to say so, for she already felt bad in the first place. She asked him to meet her after work at the shop, and he obliged coldly.

"If you ask me, he was still the one who was being a total prick." Caroline said.

"Just because you don't like him in general does not make him wrong all the time." Lola replied.

"No, I'm serious. Sure, he saved your life, gave you something to start over again. But that doesn't mean you have to revolve your entire life around him. To owe your complete existence to him. He's not God, for heaven's sake."

"Well if it weren't for him, I wouldn't have one. I wouldn't know where to even begin."

"How can you say that? Surely anyone out there would have helped you out that day." Caroline sat beside her. "If I was there, I would have taken you in as well. And I wouldn't want you to keep repaying a debt that has already been paid by your company."

"Thank you." Lola smiled and held Caroline's hand. "Anyway, I called him this morning and he's going to visit me later. So be nice alright?"

"I can't promise that. This is my shop anyway." Caroline sneered. Lola rolled her eyes.

Draco contemplated about this friend Lola, or Granger was thankful for.

First of all, not to be a pessimist, but it is impossible for a random stranger to just be around to help her in such a time. Why would you want to waste your money and time with a person with amnesia of whom you have no relation whatsoever, with a nobody? But Hermione Granger wasn't a nobody, not in the Wizarding world. After the war, she would have been a heroine, an unforgettable icon in society. So her friend definitely came from the Wizarding world.

Second, what were the motives of all of it? It's been years since the war ended, what was the point of keeping her in the dark of her past, let alone her magic? Draco thought she could have been used as a hostage, but Potter hasn't been receiving any threats at all. She seems to be living well. He could be just obsessed with the woman. The thought terrified him, this man could be dangerous.

Draco was glad that even if this so-called friend had any horrible intentions, he hasn't executed it so far. The worst thing he has done was hide her magic from her. How could she have not noticed her abilities? She was the best in class. Well, second best to him, she was just trying too hard. Her friend must be doing something to keep her powers unnoticed. A spell or a potion. It could affect her memory as well.

He needed to meet this person fast, and get him to spit the truth out. Or he'll make him.

"Draco darling, don't you have any work today?" Narcissa said as she sat beside her son on the couch.

Draco set down his glass of brandy. "Finished our latest project too early, so I could take the rest of the week off. Would you like a cup of tea, mother? You look like you haven't slept all night."

"Oh, it's nothing." She sighed. "It's just that your father hasn't been home for months and I'm just worried, that's all."

Draco tensed. He hated lying to his mother, but she doesn't know what's real or not anymore. She would have a tantrum all over again when he told her the truth. So he musters up so much courage every time she looked at him. Damn you, father. Look at what you've done to her. "You know this cause is important to him. His full devotion is to Voldemort."

"No son, his full devotion is to us. He's doing this all for us, Draco. For our own good."

_Well look what good it did to him, it brought him to his grave_, Draco thought.

"Your stalker has arrived." Caroline said as she turned their sign from open to closed.

Lola took off her apron and went outside to meet him. He looked at her austerely, his arms folded on his chest.

"Thank you for making time to meet me." She said.

"I always have time, it's just you who's always busy."

"I am so sorry, I feel like a complete prick from last time." She casted her head down, too embarrassed. "I felt ungrateful for you and all that you've done for me."

"I'm not asking you to worship me, Lola." He uncrossed his arms and ran his fingers through his hair. "I just wanted to make you happy, that's all. And I thought I knew how, but I feel like you're starting to drift away from me. And I don't know you anymore."

"I'm still me," she sighed. "At least, what's left of me. I just, I'm a little lost, you know."

"Look at me, Lola." She did. "You're not lost, you know who you are. And you've got me."

"I know."

"But you're shutting me out, and it's frustrating."

"I just feel like I'm suffocated sometimes."

He was taken aback. "Suffocated? Lola, I wasn't asking you to marry me."

"You kind of did, and that got me pressured. That's not how love works."

There were seconds of agonizing silence between them, and then he finally broke it. "Look Lola, you know how I feel about you. And I can wait for as long as I could, really. But you're not even trying to consider me as an option. Here I am all this time, and some stranger walks into your life and you entertain the idea with him more than with me. I mean, he could be dangerous!"

"If he was, he could have killed me a long time ago. Come on, trust me on this."

"I trust you. I just don't trust that bloke."

"I don't want to keep fighting like this every single time we'll talk."

"We don't have to, you just have to stop seeing him." He put his hands on his hips.

Lola slumped her shoulders. "I can't promise that, I'm sorry. But please, I don't want to lose you."

He sighed. "Come here." He held her, kissed her forehead and hugged her. It all felt too intimate for Lola, but she didn't want to start another fight with him. This is just friends making up, she thought. "Damn it, I can never stay mad at you. And you will never lose me. I will never ever leave you, Lola."

"That's just borderline creepy, seriously."

"Caroline!" Lola gasped and released herself from his arms.

"I'm going to close up shop now, care to get your things inside?"

"All right." She looked at him. "I'll be back, wait for me?"

"Always."

The day looked like a perfect day for a stroll, so Draco took advantage of it. He wasn't in vacation for long, he would have to go back to work eventually, especially with Potter gone. Who knows when he'll return on his suicide mission, who knows if he'll come back at all. And so he had to make the most of his free time. He has never really looked around the neighborhood, like really looked at it. The last time he did so he was only doing it to find out about Lola Haze, no, Hermione Granger.

Half of the time he's with her, he wanted to smack his head on the nearest wall. He kept forgetting about how this was not supposed to be some lovey-dovey affair, he simply wanted to find out why in bloody hell she has lost her memory and is in London, of all places. It felt like it was his responsibility the moment he saw her. As for his motives to do so, it was the least he could do after what their family has done during the war. He wasn't looking for some reward. He didn't want anyone to know about him doing this, he didn't want the attention. He didn't deserve it. He had to make Blaise shut up about it, which was pretty hard. But when he would spend time with her, he could not help himself. She was just so engaging and alluring, just a simple look or a touch would make him want to kiss her. And the worst part was that she'd let her, and it would feel so good. So good and so right. Then he'd remember, and he'd want to smack his head all over again.

He didn't want to get too involved with her because he still knew who she was. If she was in her right state of mind, she wouldn't even so much as look at her. That was the problem, she wasn't. And he couldn't help it if she found him attractive; that was understandable. However, he could say the same about her as well.

He now understood why his mother chose to find a home here. It almost looked like the alleys in the Wizarding world, lively but not chaotic. He looked down at the road paved with blocked stones with some weeds growing out of them. He turned left instinctively, to the direction of Lola's home. He wasn't so sure if she would be, but it wouldn't hurt to check.

Suddenly, he stopped himself from shock. Someone just popped right in front of him. He looked like a complete mess, his face tired, disgruntled and confused.

Draco's eyes almost popped right out of its sockets.

"Malfoy?"

"Potter? What are you doing here?"

* * *

><p>Hello! I finally updated! So sorry for the delay, the past few months have been shit to me (yes that includes the holidays) but it's a new year! Happy Christmas and New Year to all!<p>

I'd like to thank everyone who is soooo patient for this story, you guys encourage me to keep going. And I will try my best to update more, I'll make that one of my resolutions. Hopefully I can stick to it. I hope you all liked this chapter! Sorry there wasn't any DHr interaction, I promise there will be on the next one. Until then! x


	12. Chapter 12

"Malfoy? Where am I?"

The both of them looked flustered. "What are you doing here in Muggle London, Potter? I thought you were in your suicide mission!" Draco said. Harry looked around, searching for something, or anything. He looked like a wreck, unshaven and unshowered. "You look like shit."

"Thanks. I think it's because I've been out in the woods!" Harry took something out of his bag and shook it aggressively. "Come on, work!"

"What is that?"

"It's a, uhm, deluminator."

"A what?"

"A deluminator. Professor Dumbledore gave this to Ron when he died. I remember Ron used this to find us before and it worked. I took a chance and used it to find Hermione."

Draco put his hands in his pockets. This is going to be hard to explain.

"I guess it's not working anymore. Why Muggle London of all places? And what are you doing here, Malfoy?"

"I happen to live around here, I just took a stroll."

"You live in Muggle London? Huh." Harry looked at the device and then to Draco. "So the deluminator brought me to you? Why?"

Draco sighed and put his hand on the back of his neck. "I think we should talk somewhere more private."

They found a small pub in the next street, so Draco took Harry there. There weren't a lot of people at this hour, so that was good. People would think they're talking about nonsense. They sat at the bar and Draco bought them beers. He assumed Harry didn't have Muggle money with him, and that they're going to need the drinks with this conversation.

"Thanks. So? Talk."

Where would he even begin? Oh I found Hermione Granger, Potter. She just so happens to have lost her memory of everything, though.

"We need to go somewhere, but I need to set some ground rules first."

"What for?"

"Don't ask right now, all right? I'm going to explain to you after, but first you just need to listen and follow what I say. Can you handle that?"

"But-"

"No," Draco smacked his hand on the bar table. "You can follow what I say or you can go back to the woods where you came from. So, can you handle that?"

Harry looked at him like he was some lunatic. He should, Draco thought, this is all going to sound crazy once he told him everything. But Harry pursed his lips, and then nodded.

"I want you to refrain from talking once we get there."

"But why?"

"Because if you start blabbering things you're just going to ruin everything, like you always do. So shut up, alright?"

"Okay, jeez." Harry answered. "You don't have to be all aggressive."

"Alright, second is I want you to listen first to everything before you make a judgment. We all know how closed-minded you get."

Harry stopped drinking. "No, I don't."

"See? There it is again. And last, you will never under any circumstances tell this to anyone. And I mean anyone."

"Not even Ginny?"

"Not even her, especially her. Your girlfriend is a ball of fire, she's worst than you."

"Hey!"

"Are we clear?"

Harry shook his hair with his hand in frustration, what is Draco getting at? But he was curious as to what was going on. Maybe it'll help him with his search for Hermione. So he sighed, "Alright, fine. I'll do it."

"You swear?"

"Bloody hell Malfoy, we're not twelve. I swear."

Draco drank his beer in one chug, and then set the cup down. "I can't believe this is happening. Alright, you stay here while I make some calls."

* * *

><p>Lola and her friend had a fun night when they decided to skip everything that included Draco. She didn't understand why her friend despised Draco so much, he hasn't even met him yet. But she didn't want to press anything further or else it'll just ruin their night. They went out for some drinks and he walked her home. Lola was glad that everything is alright between the two of them, she didn't have so much friends so she couldn't afford to lose one anymore. He was still important to him, and Draco was starting to become important to her as well. She wondered if she can bring the two boys out together for a drink, maybe they just needed to know each other a little better.<p>

Lola slouched lazily on her couch, it was a weekend so the café was closed. She's never really had some free time to think and write, and now that she does, she's too lazy to do anything. It's not the case of another writer's block, it's just pure laziness.

She wished Draco would call him today.

Lola knew her friend wouldn't like her seeing him, but she couldn't help it. She liked Draco around. Lola felt easy around him, like he had known him for a long time. She thought it sounded crazy because she hasn't the slightest idea of anyone she knew from her past. But she didn't want to fight it. She deserved to be happy.

Come on, Draco.

Her phone rang, and she smiled.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's—"

"Hi, Draco. I figured it was you."

"Really?" Draco teased. "Are you free today?"

"I never thought you'd ask."

Draco chuckled. "Alright. You see I'm bringing a friend with me, is that alright with you?"

"Of course, I don't mind."

"Great, we'll be there in five minutes."

"So soon?" Lola was shocked but really didn't mind as long as it was with Draco's company. "Sure, see you then."

* * *

><p>"Is this where you live, Malfoy? I have to admit this is pretty… low key."<p>

Draco sighed. He still had no idea how to go through the situation. He doesn't even have an idea how to begin explaining it to Harry.

"No, we're visiting somebody." Draco knocked, "Remember my conditions."

"Sure, whatever Malf—"

Draco and Harry turned to the door that opened. Harry was completely stunned, and tears started forming on his eyes. He hugged Lola instantly, which startled her. Well this was awkward, she thought, maybe he was Swedish or something. "Oh, okay!" Lola chuckled. "Uhm, who's your friend Draco?"

Draco dragged Harry out of Lola's arms. "Lola, I'd like you to meet my, uhm, friend Harry Potter. Harry, this is _Lola Haze_. Come on Harry, you're not in your hometown." Draco forced a smile on his face.

Harry looked at Draco and Lola confusedly. What in bloody hell is Malfoy on about?

"Nice to meet you, Harry. Come in, please. Have a seat." Lola smiled and invited them in.

"Remember what I told you, Potter. Shut. Up." Draco mumbled to Harry. All he could do was come with Draco inside the house.

"So, would you guys want anything? Coffee, tea?" Lola asked as she directed them to her couch.

"Some tea would be alright." Draco said.

"Wait, let me just—oh darn, I'm out of tea. I'll just go and buy some outside. I won't be long, I promise."

"You don't have to—"

"No, I insist. I'll be right back." Lola grabbed her purse and took some bills out and then left.

As soon as Lola shut the door, Draco broke the silence. "Well," Draco sighed. "You can start talking now."

"Start talking? What do I even say? All I could think of right now is that this is a lousy, stupid joke. And it's not funny, Malfoy. Not at all. Whose name was she even saying? And why is she acting like she doesn't know me?"

"Because she doesn't, Potter." Draco answered. "She has amnesia."

"Amnesia? How did she get amnesia?"

"I don't know. That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"Why don't you just tell her the truth? She deserves to know that."

"From who, me? If you have forgotten Potter, Granger and I weren't exactly friends before. And she'd think I'm a complete lunatic. From her point of view, she barely knows me."

Harry ruffled his hair. "This is all so mucked up. How long has this been going on?"

"For three months."

"And you haven't told me? Malfoy, I was in the woods for three whole weeks! I saw you before I left! And you didn't tell me? You could have saved me the trouble of frolicking in the wild!"

"I didn't know how to tell you, alright? It wasn't my place."

"It didn't have to be. If you were a decent person, you would have just told me! Bloody hell." Harry buried his face on his hands in frustration. There were moments of silence between them.

Harry was right, Draco thought. The moment he saw Hermione, he could have just told him. It could have spared him the trouble of trying to find the answers. It could have saved his time instead of spending it with her.

But he didn't want to be spared of the trouble of finding the answers. And he didn't want to save his time instead of spending it with her.

In a way he didn't tell Harry because he wanted this secret to be his own. He wanted to know her without everything in the way—the war and the prejudice. And he could have a chance at that because of her lost memory. It wasn't the thrill of knowing such a great secret, it was the thrill of knowing and being with her that he forgot about everything else. He didn't admit to that until now.

He must have dropped his sense of logic somewhere.

"If someone was doing this to her, erasing her memories, then it's not safe for me to disclose this information to anyone. I would have gladly given her to you, but do you think whoever is doing this wouldn't notice? Do you think they wouldn't notice you here, right inside her home?" Draco hissed. "They could be watching us right this second, Potter. We're already making a huge risk coming over here." He grunted and ran his hand through his hair. "I did what I thought was the safest thing for her, which was to shut up. Not until I find out whoever is behind all of this."

Great, he thought, he just admitted to Harry how great his concern was to his girl best friend. He wondered if it would register to him and if he would react, but Lola returned and they both stood again.

"Sorry I took too long, I didn't know which tea you two wanted so I got a little bit of everything."

Harry's face softened. He didn't care how he got here or why Draco has anything to do with everything, he just cared that they finally found her.

"So, what do you guys like? I bought several…"

* * *

><p>Draco was glad that Lola or Hermione didn't mind that he just brought a random stranger inside her house. She thought it was great that she was starting to meet his friends. Draco and Harry laughed dryly at that remark. So they're friends now, when in reality Draco was supposed to be the odd one out of them all.<p>

Harry observed Hermione. She was still the same. She still liked to drink chamomile tea and to wait for it to be a tad bit lukewarm before she started to drink. She still had the same laughter, the same smile whenever she was being polite. God forbid, she had the same smile whenever she would try to flirt. Harry wanted to shake her senseless, are you seriously trying to flirt with Draco Malfoy? But then he remembered, so he let it pass. For now. It was all still her, but without her old memories. She did however shared new ones like she was writing a novel. It was so detailed Harry supposed that that's what happens when you lose your memories, when you make new ones you made sure you remember all of it because that's what you have left.

Harry looked at them from the other side of the couch. Draco was sitting beside Hermione, and then they both shared a laugh, her hands gently tapping his knee.

"Malfoy, can we talk outside?" he asked.

"Is everything alright?"

"It's just that I have a prior arrangement I need to attend to."

"Why don't you try to stay for a bit, we can have some dinner." Hermione, or Lola suggested. "The night is still young, and there are several restaurants outside."

"It's alright, I need to go home. I've been… traveling, and I told my girlfriend that I'd be home today."

"Oh really?" she asked. "Where did you go?"

"I, uhm, went camping. Out the woods."

"All by yourself? That's very brave of you, Harry."

Harry chuckled. "Thanks."

"I'll show him the way out." Draco said. "I'll go back here once he finds his way home."

"Alright. You sure you can't stay Harry?" Lola touched Harry's arm. He remembered how caring she was. And she still is.

"Sorry, but it was nice meeting you, Lola." They all stood up and Harry hugged her once again. "  
>It was very nice seeing you." Harry said, his voice almost breaking.<p>

"It was nice meeting you too. I'll tell Draco to inform me when you're back in town." Lola looked at Draco with confusion. Draco merely shrugged. Harry released her, and the two men left the house.

Once Draco and Harry got to the nearest corner, Harry grabbed Draco's arm and looked him in the eye.

"I did my bargain, Malfoy. Now it's time you do yours. I don't know what you're planning to do to find out what the hell is going on with her, but I want you to inform me as soon as you can if there are any leads. Do you understand?"

Draco nodded sternly.

Harry let Draco go. "I'll be back to work by next week. See you then." Harry moved a few spaces away to apparate. "And I don't like to beg, but please, watch over her. Take care of her. She's important to me."

And then he disappeared.

"You and me both." Draco muttered and put his hands in his pockets as he walked back to her house.

* * *

><p>Wellll I did say I would try to update as soon as I could. I'm sorry if some of you are so intrigued to the point of irritation as to who the friend is, but we are so close to getting there so hang on tight everyone! Thanks to all, until next time! x<p> 


	13. Chapter 13

Draco sighed heavily as soon as Harry apparated away.

He hadn't expected for there to be such a big revelation on his rest day. He felt that it was too soon, but Potter was right. Draco should have told him as soon as he had found her. He wasn't exactly thinking right. He'd blame Lola or Hermione for that. Well at least Potter knew now, the worst part was over. He didn't really know how to tell him when the time was right.

Speaking of Potter, he was completely surprised it went well with him too, considering it was Harry Potter and his long lost friend involved. He stayed true to his word, which Draco did not expect from the hard-headed hero. He thought he was going to flip out the moment he laid eyes on her after years. But the shock must have helped though, since it rendered Potter speechless. It did not stop him however to hug her. That must have been from instinct. That was his biggest slip up, which relieved Draco.

Well that was one thing ticked off of his to-do list. It could have been worse. Harry would think he was insane and might have hexed him senseless out of anger. It was possible, for he was impulsive. No wonder they needed Hermione in the trio. Draco doubted they would even defeat Voldemort without her. They would probably just give up and start playing duck, duck goose all over the forest. He chuckled to himself as he went back to Lola's place.

"You're back!"

Draco looked up and saw Lola, or Hermione, by the door. She put her hair up in a messy bun, a grin spread wide on her face. Who could resist that face?

"Yeah, sorry about my friend. He's… Scottish."

"He is? He doesn't sound like it. Oh well." She tilted her head. "Want to come back in?"

"Will there be biscuits?" Draco teased.

Lola's nose crinkled. "I think so. Fancy some stale ones?"

Draco chuckled and went inside.

She greeted him with the warmest of smiles as she invited him in. "Your friend was nice." She said.

"You didn't think it was too much?" Because if it was him, he would have been so annoyed and even scared of his violation of personal space.

"A little. But he didn't look too alarming. He's your friend anyway." They both sat back down at the couch. "Is he always that grungy?"

Draco chuckled. "Yes."

"You always look so sharp. You two seem like complete opposites but you're still friends. How long have you known each other?"

"Since school."

"Well no wonder, you've been friends for a long time that you've gotten used to each other. That's some great friendship you got."

Draco wanted to puke. "You could say that."

"Makes me wonder if I ever had that kind of friendship." She crossed her arms to her stomach. Draco could sense a hint of sadness by the way she said it. If only she knew the person who just visited was the one who has been her friend for the longest time, and could have still been her friend if she had not lost her memory.

"I'm sure you did," Draco consoled her. "You would have been a great friend. Caroline must think so."

She made a small smile. "I've only had two real, intimate friends so far. I don't know, it just feels too much if I had more, do you get what I mean?" Oh he does. There are some things that don't change, Draco thought.

"What about me?" he asked. "Am I not your friend?"

"I'm still weighing in on that one." she made a face and beamed. "Thank you, by the way."

"For what?"

"Well first, for coming over," she turned to him and laid her head on the couch. "And for convincing me to make amends with my other friend."

"That's nothing. You did that on your own. By the way, I've never met this other friend of yours. How come I don't see him or her?"

"Well I guess you two never really had a chance. Oh, I know! How about the three of us go out together some time?"

Draco rested his arm on the couch. This was a brilliant idea. "You sure that would be alright?"

"Maybe, I mean I'll go check on him. But I hope so. I don't understand why he's so irritated with you. He hasn't even met you yet. I think I must have given him a wrong impression of you."

He raised his brow. "What impression exactly?"

She sighed. "Well, let's see. I don't want to sound pompous but my friend has a little crush on me."

"Really? Well aren't you a goddess."

"Shut up!" She slapped him lightly on his leg and left it there. "So yeah, I think he's a bit threatened?"

"Why would he be threatened?"

"Probably because you're a little bit ahead on the game than he is." She mumbled.

"Good," Draco leaned closer to her. "I like being on the upper hand."

"Tell you what," Lola touched his collar and leaned closer as well. "We go out with him, and then if you can smooth talk him to liking you, you might just win the race."

"Sounds like a brilliant plan."

"Good." She whispered, their faces a few inches apart.

Draco could not resist but put his lips on hers the moment she said the last consonant. She responded to it quickly, sighing in the process. She tasted like her tea and of other delicious things; Draco just had to have more. Her lips, her tongue welcomed his with the same intensity. Draco's hand went to grab her waist to pull her even closer than possible. Lola's hands went for his neck upwards to run through his hair. She couldn't contain herself any further so she moved to sit on Draco's lap, his legs in between hers.

"I have to say this puts you in an even more advantage." Lola said, breathless.

Draco chuckled and started kissing her jaw to her neck, both sides. "Good." His hands moved to the inside of her sweater, her skin was so warm. He reached upwards until he felt another fabric of a different kind. Draco teased, his fingers gently breaching through her bra. Lola moaned his name. Her hands, eager to do something, went to his shirt, unbuttoning them one by one. As soon as she finished Draco took the shirt off himself, their faces never leaving each other like it was air underwater. Lola was grinding herself to him, and Draco could not help it but take off her sweater as well.

They stopped kissing then. Draco looked at the sight before him. Lola was a sight to behold, her skin so soft and creamy. He grazed his fingers slowly from her left collarbone to her right, remembering the slopes. He used both of his hands to gently caress her shoulders downwards to her arms. How is it possible to be so lost in awe of someone else's body?

"Beautiful." He whispered.

Lola kissed him, volunteering this time, as her hands released from his hold and touched his firm chest up to his shoulders. She seemed so hungry for him, and he felt the same. Probably even more. His hands moved to her abdomen, teasing to move them upwards. He was having second thoughts on it but then he said screw it in his head and did it.

It was firm, just right. But what was better was her reaction to it. She moaned his name, which made him squeeze them a little harder.

"Draco."

Either he was a complete idiot or a total prick for agreeing, he couldn't decide what his next step was. So he kissed her lips down to her neck again.

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Can I say something completely ridiculous?"

Draco looked at her. Maybe this was going to end. Or maybe this was just a pep talk before it will begin. Either way, it was up to her. "What is it?"

"I don't know if I've done it before." She said, embarrassed.

Oh. Right. Well.

"We don't have to if you don't want to." Draco brushed her stray hair to her ear.

"I want to, but then it would bother me for the rest of my life if I don't figure out if this is my first or not."

"Do you think you've done it before? I mean, think about it, is it something you would have already done?"

She looked like she was pondering on it.

If it was Draco trying to analyze it, his first answer would have been that she is a complete virgin. This is Hermione Granger we're talking about. She's the epitome of celibacy, other than Ronald Weasley. No wonder they looked good together.

Then again, maybe they could have. Like maybe a first and last time thing before things went to shit, hypothetically. And they would most likely do it to each other, since Potter is quite busy trying to kill Voldemort the entire time.

It was inconclusive, but he had to go with his first instinct that she is still a virgin. But he'd rather hope that she wasn't so that he wasn't his first. Think about how horrified she would be when she gets her memories back and remembers.

That thought was enough to kill the mood. His mood, in particular.

"Lola, this is all up to you. We don't have to do this if you don't want to. It's alright."

"It's not that I don't want to, Draco—" She said, her hands on her cheeks.

"I know." Draco put his hands on top of hers gently. "But first time or not, I know you would want this to be special. If it bothers you so much, we can just wait until you figure it out."

"How can I even figure it out?"

Draco paused. "I don't know."

"Do I just, uhm…"

"Well that is another problem."

"Poke?"

"What?" Draco laughed. "Come here."

"Are you laughing at me?"

"No!" He kissed her forehead, nose and lips softly. "No."

"Well, it is pretty hilarious." Lola muttered.

Draco put her head on his shoulder, and mumbled something in her hair.

"What?"

Draco was glad for her thick mop of hair in the way of her hearing. "Nothing."

He would have said something completely wrong. Or something completely right. He was betting more on the former.

"Thank you for understanding." Lola said. "If it helps the respect you have for my decision still gives you an advantage? You might as well say…" She put her hands on his chest. "That you have won me over."

Draco felt a thousand birds were fluttering all over his chest, and it wasn't just her touch that triggered it. That, or the draft of the house. Either way, he kissed her passionately, his mood changing once again. She responded so quickly and intensely, it was all tongue and teeth but it didn't bother them both. Her hands on his shoulders gripped so hard, her nails were digging. "Take me upstairs." She said.

Despite having no idea where her bedroom is, Draco found it. Albeit having to take breaks in between and hitting themselves through the walls. He kicked the door open and put her gently into bed. She went under the covers and invited him in. This time, lying side to side, they kissed again. It was soft, slow and sweet.

"You sure about this?" Draco asked. His final call to get her out of trouble that is himself. She nodded and smiled. Draco went on top of her, his hands clearing her hair out of her radiant face. Inside the covers, it was just them. Draco and Lola. Draco and Hermione. Draco and Lola and Hermione. He didn't know who was with him, but he liked who it was nonetheless. Draco kissed her cheeks, her jaw, her neck, her collar, the valley of her breasts. Her gasps became louder at each touch of his lips. He put his hand on her back, hers on top of his head, leading to kiss her there, there, and there. Just like that, her bra was unclasped and discarded. Her pupils dilated and breath hitching, Draco kissed one breast then the other, eliciting him deep moans from her. Ever the pleaser, he flicked his tongue on her taut nipple.

Lola was so frustrated she was grinding on to him, showing how eager she was. She started to fumble to take of his pants, and groaned upon seeing her prize. She could tell the bulge in his underwear, and took it off along with his trousers. Draco was pleased with her excitement, he took hers off in a swish as well. He whispered her words like beautiful, gorgeous, amazing—and something else he hoped she didn't take seriously. Draco put his hand in between her legs and growled at how wet they were. He kissed her softly as he muttered to her to relax. He spread he legs and slowly put himself inside her, and they both gasped.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yes. Keep going." She replied. She felt so incredible Draco had to stop himself from taking things faster. He wanted to slow the progress down as much as possible for her and for the moment to last for him. She gasped and moaned and moved along with him, each grind more bewildering than the next. Her legs tangled themselves to his hips, showing how hungry she was for more. Draco slipped his free hand in between them and touched her little nub, making her groan faintly. Her mumbles were like music to his ears, her touches like a cure. He went faster this time, and her faint 'yes' just only made him crave for more. He went even faster and she grunted out of ecstasy. Their breaths and moans became more coherent, and she said his name like a prayer as a sudden surge of energy flowed all throughout her body. Draco couldn't help but give in to the way her walls felt on his shaft as it pulsated, how her cries sounded like a voice from some higher being and he grunted as he reached his own orgasm. He kissed her temple to her neck, as the waves inside of him still roared. Lola moved her hands to hug his back, as if consoling him through his final waves of pleasure. He fell on top of her, but made sure he didn't constrict her from breathing.

"Can you move back to the bed?" She said breathlessly.

Draco did as he was bid, and sighed as if he was broken free from chains. Lola moved to hug him on his side, her head rested on his chest. He put his free hand on her bare back.

Well, that was uncalled for.

* * *

><p>This has got to be the most painful chapter I have done so far. Sorry to shock everybody, I made it a bit longer if it helps! This is a M-rated fic anyway, so I guess it's a bit expected?<p>

I can't wait for the next chapter, I don't want to spoil everybody but if you've been reading since the beginning you'd know it's the big reveal. Thanks for all the reviews and patience. I've got most of it all thought out and I'm sorry if it's slow for some people, I guess that's just how I write?

Until the next one! :)


	14. Chapter 14

Draco woke up feeling warm and cozy despite the unfamiliarity of it all. This wasn't his bed, and it wasn't definitely his room. He moaned and felt two extra pair or arms around him. Did he grow them while he slept?

He opened his eyes and remembered. Along with the glow of the moonlight was a sleeping Hermione Granger, or Lola Haze as she would call herself nowadays. Her mop of hair was scattered on her forehead, some sticking on her neck from her own sweat. Some things never change even when someone has amnesia. Her hair was still as mess, but this time he liked it because it was partially his fault why it was disheveled. Her lips were slightly parted, her freckles merely visible.

It was bound to happen, he thought to himself. With all that sexual frustration between the two of them, their will they-won't they charade wouldn't take long to be unanswered. No matter how hard he tried to resist because he knew it was wrong, he couldn't stop himself from being close to her. He was drawn every single moment it frustrated and exhilarated him.

And then they finally did it. Oh, yes they did.

She looked surreal that Draco was too afraid to move an inch even if his limbs felt numb. He pushed the hair out of her face gently, his touching making her sigh and wake. She made a timid smile as she slowly opened her eyes. She gasped. This scared Draco, was she having regrets about what happened?

"Oh my goodness! It's dark already?"

Draco was relieved and smiled. "Yes, I'm afraid so. Do you feel alright?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you feel… hurt or anything?"

Lola's perplexed look was changed into one of embarrassment. Of course there was still the lingering matter that she may or may not have been devirginized at that moment. "I… I don't know. I don't feel anything particularly bad."

"Oh, well then maybe you must have done it before." Draco was admittedly slightly disappointed, which stirred up some feelings inside of him. Why should he? He's a nobody to Hermione Granger's life. If she was in her right state of mind he wouldn't even come close as to touching her. He'd probably get a good thirty-mile hex.

"You know what, I don't care." Lola replied. "I don't remember a single thing from my past, but that didn't stop me from building myself a present. And so that's what I'm going to focus on. My present says you are my first, and so you are. And you know what," she touched his cheek gently, "I don't regret it one bit."

Draco smiled and grabbed her back to pull Lola closer to him, their bare chests closing the distance between the two of them. "I'm glad to be your first." She reached up to kiss him, sighing in his mouth. This awoken Draco even more and he moved on top of her. Lola reached for the bed sheet and covered herself, which made him chuckle. "What are you doing? It's nothing I haven't seen before."

Lola bit her bottom lip. "But I—"

"You are the most exquisite creature I have ever laid my eyes upon. Would you deprive me of seeing you?" Draco nibbled on her ear, jaw and neck. "Come on love, show yourself to me." Draco slowly pulled the sheets downward.

The night light wasn't really doing her any justice, but it had to do. She was still timid about exposing herself to him. This reminded her of the Yule Ball, when Granger was too shy to come out when she looked… amazingly different in that blue dress. It was another thing that hadn't changed about her at all. "You look… amazing. So this is what's been hiding underneath those sweaters." Lola laughed at the remark, which was replaced by hitched breaths as Draco grazed his fingers gently across her body, feeling every curve and slope. "You even feel amazing."

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"Will you stay for the night?"

He then kissed her hip. "I thought you'd never ask." It was then that removed the sheets from her entire body, baring her completely. He grazed her thighs and raised her right leg, caressing softly to her feet and then the other. Draco held her hips and urged her to turn around and lie down on her stomach, which she obliged. He touched her from her neck to the small of her back. And her arse, it was perfect. He brought his hand to her ankles upwards, to the insides of her thighs, almost touching that special place, the prize. He repeated it several times, teasing her. The entire time Lola would shiver and moan and gasp at every contact, and it all shot ecstasy through Draco. As he would race his hand back to her thighs, it would come closer, and that was when he realized that she was wet which made him whisper her name. He turned her face so he could kiss her, it was frantic and needy. Draco raised her arse to his throbbing shaft, telling her that this is what she does to him. That she wasn't the only one who felt that way. Lola went on all fours and then moaned in his mouth out of need. "Draco, please. Please." She didn't have to plead, Draco thought. All she had to do was say what she wanted and he would do anything for her. He positioned himself and then plunged himself inside her in one smooth motion which resulted for them both to groan. Draco bit on her neck as he went in and out of her, like a hunter has caught its prey. Every thrust made her pant and him moan. He squeezed her breasts and he thrust even harder, both spiraling out of control.

"You feel so good." Draco groaned. He released one of her breasts and moved to touch her clit, which shocked her. She kept exclaiming that she was going to come, her voice a pitch higher than the last. This made Draco even go faster and harder, which did it for Lola. She screamed her release as her walls clenched him tight, making him come as well a little afterwards. He cried her name on her shoulder as he spilled himself inside of her once again. As the final waves of their orgasm wear out, they collapsed to the bed as they reach for air.

"My god, twice in a day. That was… oh my god." Lola said.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." Draco panted. Lola then started laughing as she turned to lie on her back. "What's so funny?"

"Caroline had a feeling you were good in bed. Turns out she was right. So that's what _I've_ been missing all this time."

Draco chuckled at the remark. "That doesn't even cover half of what I can do, love. Want to know the rest?"

"For goodness sake Draco, can we at least get a breather first? I still haven't fully recovered!"

"As you wish." He said as he kissed the top of her head.

"Draco?"

"Yes?"

"I'm hungry."

"Let's grab a bite outside? After another…" Lola glared at him and he smiled. "Just kidding. I'll go get dressed."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

They both went to the nearest restaurant they could find, for Lola was famished, as she would say. She couldn't believe what just happened between her and Draco… twice in a day, in fact. She didn't know what had gotten into her, she wanted him, and he felt the same. He also said he would take things slow for her because she wanted to. Turns out things would escalate quicker than she had imagined.

It's not that she regretted it, oh no. It was amazing. She never knew it could feel that great. Well she wouldn't know if she did know back then. It was her present that was right in front of her, and it was something that she felt she should mind more. It surprised her how she reacted about it all. She's been trying to remember her past so she can move on with her present, but nothing seems to have been working. All those medications the doctor had given her haven't helped, and it's as if her mind would not try to cooperate with her either. It felt pointless.

She wasn't saying that she had completely given up. That was still a part of her life. Part of her still wanted to know who she was before. But it doesn't change the fact that it's gone, for now, and that she shouldn't be too worked up about it. The life she's living in the present isn't so bad anyway. In fact, it just got a little better.

Famished was an appropriate word for Lola, in fact it almost wasn't enough to cover it. "Did I just finish all four courses without even realizing it?"

"So? So did I?" Draco answered. "We needed to recover, remember?"

Lola rolled her eyes at him as she reached for his hand. "Thank you for everything today, Draco. Really."

"It was my pleasure, literally." Draco winked. "Do you have any plans this week?"

"Not really, why?"

"Well I was wondering if we could have some dinner again, this time with your friends."

"Really? You want to have dinner with my friends?"

"Why not? Caroline seems very nice, and has good intuition about me." They both laughed again at the remark. "And you said you'd like me to meet your other friend."

"Alright then, I'll go tell them tomorrow."

"Actually, I was hoping it'll be our little secret. Tell them it will just be you three."

"Hmm." Lola took a sip of her drink. "Actually, that could work. One of them isn't entirely too fond of you, and it will be hard to convince him to come."

"That's what I thought." Draco said. "I'll tell you all about it once it's arranged." He kissed the back of her hand.

"I hope it will all go alright."

"I promise it'll run smoothly."

ooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Did you get botox or are you just too happy to see me? Either way, it looks terrifying." Caroline said the moment Lola arrived for work.

"Good morning, Caroline." She replied cheerfully as she put down her bag and got ready for work.

"Okay, something is very wrong with you. I can feel it. Are you on drugs right now?" Caroline inspected her face, her hands on her hips.

"Of course not! Why would I even use drugs when I'm going to work? Why am I going to use drugs at all?"

"Because it's occasionally fun? Seriously, what is so different about you that I just can't put my finger on?" She gasped. "Is this about Draco?"

Lola bit her bottom lip. "A little bit."

"Holy shit, did you shag him already?"

"I am not having this discussion with you at work, Caroline."

"Screw work! I am the boss here and I can close the entire shop until you tell me all about it!"

"All about what?"

"Don't play your innocent card at me, missy! Unless you're a guy, that wouldn't work on me." Caroline was shocked beyond compare. "Holy crap, Lola! Sex! You! It sounds so illogical until now!"

"I'm not asexual, Caroline. I am capable of sex." Lola couldn't stop herself from laughing at her friend's reactions.

"So how was it? Tell me!" Caroline held her by the arms and shook her. "Why am I even asking, this is Draco we're talking about, of course it was shag-tastic!"

"Did you just invent a new word?"

"Just tell me and stop being a prude, you wench!"

"I'm not going to tell you anything, other than the fact that you were right about him." Lola winked as she released herself from her friend's hold.

"I knew it!" Caroline exclaimed. "Damn it, I should have stolen him from you when I had the chance." Lola scoffed and hit her with her apron as they both giggled. "So how does it feel to finally get laid?"

"Drop it, Caroline!"

At the end of the day, as the two friends move to close the shop, they heard the door chime ring. "It must be Draco." Caroline said. "I need to congratulate him for getting into your pants."

"Caroline, no!"

Lola chased after her to the counter, feeling the excitement to see him again. It was dropped at soon as Caroline remarked, "Oh man, you? What do you want now?"

"Hey Lola." He smiled as he moved to hug her. She returned the hug most reluctantly with a pat at the back. "I'm glad I got a call from you, you have no idea how happy it made me."

"Hey C, how have you been?"

"I've been good. I was wondering why you wanted me to come over here today."

"Wait you invited him here?"

"Caroline," Lola mumbled as she eyed her to be nice. "Yes, I gathered you both here today—"

"How can you gather me here? I work here, we work in the same place." Caroline cut her.

"As I was saying, I gathered you both here today because I wanted the three of us to eat out tonight to get some dinner."

"Really? That sounds nice, Lola. I would love to go." He replied.

"Umm, no thanks." Caroline muttered.

"Could you excuse us for a moment?" Lola took Caroline by the arm and hid to the personnel area. "Come on Caroline, join with us please?"

"Why would I? The only reason I tolerate that friend of yours is when you're around and when I need to be civil. And I'm not in the mood to be civil; it's the end of the day!"

"Please? I don't want it to be awkward between him and Draco—"

"Wait, what? Draco is joining us too? Why didn't you say it before?"

"You know he doesn't like him very much. And Draco wants to get along with my closest friends so he arranged dinner for the four of us." Lola whispered. "Please Caroline, do this for me. I don't think I can handle it if things get rough between the two of them."

Caroline eyed her suspiciously. "Is it in a fancy restaurant?"

"Is that a serious question? Come on this is Draco we're talking about here."

"Hmm. Good point." She sighed. "Fine! But I'm not going to act as a referee too, alright? I'll be watching and betting in the stands while I drink my cocktail." They both went back outside, while he was fidgeting. "Well, this will be fun!"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Draco certainly didn't plan to disappoint, he booked at a fancy Italian restaurant, ordered the usual four courses, remembering the last time he and Lola ate out. Just the memory of that day made him stir and cannot wait to be with her again.

But, first things first.

Tonight would also be the time that he would meet the supposed culprit to her amnesia. He still had no idea who it could be, the motive, and the idleness of the agenda. It has been years and the mastermind has not made any move other than keep Hermione's memories in check. He thought it must have been something not entirely thought through. The guy must have been mentally challenged.

Nevertheless, somehow he wanted to thank him. If it weren't for his stupidity and lack of security towards her, he wouldn't have spent some time with her. Quality time with Hermione Granger seemed to have been impossible, turns out you just needed to alter her memory. Why didn't he think of that?

On a serious note, he thought about what he would do once he fixed this problem. He didn't want a reward, oh no. Who cares what everyone else thinks when this is all over? He wasn't after the fame of let alone the gratitude of Potter and Friends gang. Surely she would get her memories back. And along with the memories of the present, what will become of the two of them? He has grown… fond of her, thus the sex. He enjoys her company. Will it all be over once all is said and done? Draco was tempted to cancel the meeting, but why? So he could keep her? Could he live with that for the rest of his life?

Wait. It's not like he's going to marry her or anything.

He could've just stopped seeing her when he wasn't entirely attached. Or at least turned her to Potter the day he saw her.

Who's mentally challenged now?

He was in the middle of contemplating when he felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned around and saw Lola, smiling at him like an angel. "Hello."

"Hi love," He stood and kissed her softly on the lips, his hands moving to her waist. "How was your day?"

"It was good, but it just became better."

"Hi Caroline." Draco greeted her friend.

"Oh, you can see me? The entire time I thought I was invisible." Caroline teased as she rolled her eyes. "Not too bad, Draco. This place looks really nice."

"Where's your other friend?"

"He just went to the loo, he'll be right with us." Lola replied. Draco took them to their seats and chatted with them for a bit when he heard a voice behind him.

"I'm back. Who's this?"

Draco turned around and a smug smile formed on his face at the sight of the man behind him.

"This here is Draco." Lola said nervously. "Draco, I'd like you to meet my friend—"

"Oh it's okay, we've already met." Draco snarled. "Didn't know you were still alive, McLaggen."

* * *

><p>Okay so I did! I finally revealed who C is! Some of you are very smart and figured it out way back. I wanted to fool you guys and think of a different character but it could disrupt the flow of the story so I stuck with it now.<p>

Thanks for everyone who's been patiently waiting and reading, the old and new readers, I appreciate you all. Please hang on even if the big reveal is done, who knows there could be more. ;) Until the next chapter! Reviews are very welcome!


	15. Chapter 15

Back at Hogwarts, there were only selected people whom Draco thought was worthy of his time. There was of course, Harry Potter. He was so stuck up, someone had to show him that not everyone would kiss his chosen arse. That also included his posse, The Weasleys, Granger, Longbottom and Looney Lovegood. There were a few more but none more substantial than the Golden Trio.

Draco couldn't care less about Cormac McLaggen then.

He thought he was a social climber, trying to sneak his way into the Slug Club just because he's related to someone. Draco didn't even know who, so he must have been not that important. He tried out for Gryffindor's Quidditch team, but failed. He must have been not that good either, losing to Ronald Weasley. He's not really bright as he remembered.

If Draco would associate one word with him, it would be… pathetic. Just like he is now.

Turns out, Cormac McLaggen was the secret friend, the supposed culprit that have caused the disappearance from the Wizarding World and memory loss of Hermione Granger. He gave her a different name, a different life, a life without magic. But why?

All in good timing, Draco thought.

"Hello Malfoy, fancy seeing you here." Cormac sneered. God, he's so pretentious.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Lola, formerly known as Hermione Granger, said.

"Well this is awkward." Caroline muttered.

Lola shook her head in disbelief and looked at Cormac accusingly. "All this time, you knew who Draco was? Is that why you're so negative towards him? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Yes why didn't you, McLaggen?" Draco said innocently.

"I didn't know if it was the same person, Lola." Cormac defended.

"Really? How many people can have the name Draco Malfoy? I'm pretty sure there aren't a lot."

"I think I'll call a waiter." Caroline said. The waiter arrived, confused about the hostility of the situation, but took her order. "I want a vodka tonic, stat."

"I can't believe this, all this time you two know each other—" Lola said.

"I should say the same for you, Malfoy." Cormac said. "How come you don't tell her about how you know me?"

"Well that's easy, because we _never_ talk about you." Draco replied. Caroline almost spat her drink.

"Can we just settle down, please?" Lola pleaded to the two men. "Let's take our seats, shall we?"

As soon as they sat, the two first courses arrived. The tension was pretty obvious for the four of them. Draco and Cormac kept eyeing each other, Lola was still confused, and Caroline hiding her grin at the scenario taking casual sips of her drink. "This place is very lovely by the way, Draco."

"Thank you Caroline."

"I can't imagine how you could afford it."

"Oh well I do." Cormac said. "Draco's family is very rich. All for the wrong reasons, of course."

"What are you talking about?"

"Actually, he knows nothing about what he's talking about. I bet it's just all stemming out of jealousy, which is something I expect from him."

"You think I would be jealous of someone like you? After everything you and your family has done—"

"As a matter of fact, I do. At least my family has some guts. Can't say that about yours though."

"How dare you talk about my family, you have no idea—"

"That's right, I don't. And frankly, I don't want to bother."

"Would you two please stop bickering?" Lola said, fuming. "You two are acting like children. If you want to continue this immaturity, do it outside."

"Yes, why don't we?" said Draco.

"And miss all the drama? Come on, Lola. Let them stay here." Caroline teased.

"Couldn't agree more, let's take this conversation outside shall we?" Cormac replied, dumping her napkin aside.

"What? Draco!" Lola grabbed him by the arm. "Don't make a scene. Please?"

"Don't worry, love. We won't. It'll just be a man to man talk. We won't do anything embarrassing, I promise." He raised her hand and kissed the back of it. The two men both stood up. "Ladies first?"

"Screw you, Malfoy." Cormac grumbled as they both exited the restaurant.

"I can't believe this is happening." Lola said.

"I do." Caroline replied. Lola glared at him while she continued to drink.

oooooooooo

The two men were standing outside opposite each other, their hands in their pockets. If there were wands inside them, this would look like a duel.

"I wouldn't bring out your wand if I were you." Draco said.

"I'm not an idiot, Malfoy." Cormac answered.

"Good, now if you know what's good for you, why don't you tell me why that certain woman inside has lost her memory? What do you want from her?"

"I should ask you the same question." Cormac walked slowly. "If I remember correctly, you weren't a huge fan of Hermione. You hated her."

"Hate is a strong word."

"But you do, you hate her. Because she's a Mudblood, or have you forgotten?"

Draco chuckled. "You must have been out of the loop lately. Blood prejudice is gone, McLaggen."

"But that doesn't mean that it is completely gone—"

"You would know about that, you were there when it all ended."

"And so were you. But oh wait, your family left like a bunch of cowards." Cormac teased.

"We were trying to be smart, you idiot."

"You call that smart? Scurrying away like a bunch of rats because your Dark Lord was losing the battle? You Malfoys have no integrity."

"Says the one who kidnapped Hermione Granger!"

"What's it got anything to you anyway, huh Malfoy?" Cormac moved closer, eyeing Draco. "You couldn't give a rat's arse about Hermione Granger before and now you trying to blackmail me into telling you—"

"If this was blackmail, I would have already won. I'm giving you a chance to get things right."

"What do _you_ know about right?"

"I know enough that when this comes out you will go to Azkaban!"

"What about you? You knew it was her. Why didn't you turn me in then? But just so you know, you're in it as much as I do."

"No, I didn't—"

"But why would you, Malfoy? Why would you go through all this efforts to woo someone you barely even like?" Cormac had a moment of understanding and then sneered. "Oh, that's why, you like her! All that time in Hogwarts where you were taunting her, it was all a crush wasn't it?" He went around Draco like a vulture about to eat his meal. "Too bad she didn't take notice of you then, because it was all Potter, Potter. I bet it annoyed the hell out of you, didn't it? And now, with all her memories gone including of you, you can start all over again with her. Do things right this time. Well you _can't_ have her!"

"And why not?" Draco replied angrily. "You think you do? I have done more for her than you could for the past five years! You are nothing but a friend to her, it makes me feel sorry for you. And I'll even be more sorry when you pay for what you've done to her as you rot in Azkaban!"

Cormac tutted. "Oh Malfoy, don't you think you should be thanking me for giving you this opportunity? And for the record, if you turn me in, the spell will be gone. You honestly think she'll still come back to you? She'd be appalled! But with me, she'll be alright."

"What part of she only treats you as a friend can you not understand?"

"Stay away from her, Malfoy. Because if you don't, I will hurt you."

"You can't hurt me—"

"Then I'll hurt her. Do you understand me?"

"You can't threaten me, McLaggen. You're pathetic. All this time you have been obsessing over somebody you _cannot_ have."

"Pity, I should say the same for you." Draco was stunned at Cormac's remark as he turned and walked away. "I'm out of here. Take advantage of your last night with her, consider it as my gift to you for keeping this hush."

Okay. Here are a few things Draco found out tonight.

One. It was Cormac McLaggen who made Hermione lost her memory.

Two. He's a complete sadistic, obsessive psychopath.

Three. Draco is obsessing over someone he can never have. Not entirely.

The restaurant door flew open, and Lola came out from it. "Where is he going? Draco, what have you done?"

"I didn't do anything."

"Then why did he leave?"

"I don't know." Draco shrugged.

"Draco, what happened?"

"We talked. I told you, it was just man to man talk."

"And he just happened to walk away just like that?" He shrugged again. "This was a bad idea."

Draco moved closer to her, touched the back of her head and hugged her. "Hey, the worst part is over."

He was telling that to himself more than hers.

The rest of the night went smoothly. Draco, Lola and Caroline resumed eating and had conversations. Caroline was naturally funny, no wonder she and Lola were friends. They went to a pub afterwards and had a few more drinks. By the time they had their due, they walked Caroline home. Draco's hand moved to hold Lola's. "I hope you still had a great night after what happened."

"I did. Thank you, Draco." Lola sighed. "I still don't understand why he didn't tell he knew you. Why do you two hate each other?"

"I found him pretentious. He is pretentious, isn't he?"

"Come on, Draco. I'm sure he means well."

Not about kidnapping you. "He's obsessed with you."

"What? Don't be ridiculous."

"He is!"

"He's been nothing more than a friend for years, Draco. Don't be so jealous."

"I'm not jealous. Why would I be, I've got you and he doesn't."

She looked at him and chuckled, her head shaking. "Yes, you do."

"I know he's your friend and all but I think it's wise that you stay away from him for a bit."

"Draco Malfoy, don't be such a clingy boyfriend!"

"Oh, so I'm your boyfriend now huh?" Draco pulled her closer, their faces were so near they could kiss.

"That depends, do you have any other girlfriends I should know about?" Lola asked and he shook his head. "Good."

Draco moved to kiss her, at first softly but then it became intense. He didn't know if this was because he just wanted to or he was taking Cormac's word for this being his last night. What other things can you do if it was your last night with her?

oooooooooo

Draco didn't come home again that night. Thanks to the drinks, they ended up fooling around at the couch. And the bed. And the kitchen when they thought they were hungry. If she was a virgin before, well she certainly isn't now. They went back to her bed, their limbs tangled together after they finally decided to get some sleep.

Lola sighed as she put her hand on his chest. "I could get used to this."

Draco kissed the crown of her head. "Me too."

* * *

><p>Well there it is! I know it doesn't exactly explain everything, but all in good timing! Thanks everyone, I appreciate the reviews. Until the next! :)<p> 


	16. Chapter 16

Lola woke up that morning feeling tired but happy. Beside her lay Draco Malfoy, her now official boyfriend, who stayed for the night. Last night was a whirlwind. Her friend Cormac and Draco knew each other all along, and to make matters worse they're not fond of each other. It was clear that they had issues back then, but what was it?

Cormac said things about Draco and vice versa, leaving Lola clueless and curious as to what they were talking about. Not to mention the fact that they decided to talk outside that night, resulting to Cormac leaving earlier without even saying goodbye to her. It was completely unlike him.

Draco made it up to her later on that night, which made her forget about it for a while. She was going to ask them about it when they got a chance to talk.

Lola ran her hands through Draco's hair softly before she shimmied out of bed without a sound, trying not to wake him up. She went to the kitchen and started making coffee. After setting for the water to boil, she went to the bathroom and saw herself in the mirror. Her hair was hopeless, tangled into a mess more so than usual. If Draco saw her like this, it would scare him. She tried her best to make herself more presentable and then went out.

Draco woke up feeling cold, looking for the warmth of Lola's body next to him. She must have woken up, he thought. Yesterday was the big reveal, it was Cormac McLaggen who did this to Hermione. He wanted to put him to Azkaban, let him rot in there for what she's done to her. But his threats last night returned to him, and so he couldn't make up his mind. But he wasn't planning on getting her out of his sight. He got out of bed to find her.

She found him awake and in the kitchen, finishing what she started. He was shirtless, wearing nothing but his pants that perfectly clung to his hips. "Good morning."

Draco turned and leaned on the counter. "You really shouldn't leave the kettle on when you're going somewhere else."

"I wasn't going to take long." She walked to him, her hands moving through the contours of his shoulders and arms. "You need to put on a shirt, it's distracting me."

Draco tilted his head to give her a soft, chaste kiss. "I shouldn't wear shirts that often then."

Lola chuckled while his hands slither to her hips, coaxing her to come closer. "Seriously, I have to go to work and I can't think straight."

"I would wear a shirt, but you have them."

Lola looked down at herself, oh right.

"Since you want me to put a shirt on, I need mine back." Draco teased as he moved his hands inside the fabric, touching her skin as he slowly took it off of her. The slowness of the action made her catch her breath. Lola's curls bounced off her shoulders once the shirt was gone, leaving her with nothing but her underwear on. "On second thought, I don't feel like wearing it. Not with the view in front of me."

Draco pulled Lola close as he kissed her deeply and fervently, his hands touching her hair and the small of her back. Her futile attempt of fixing her hair was pointless when he ran his hands through it, but she liked it anyway. Her hands wrapped around his neck, her body leaning towards him. Draco kissed her jaw down to the spot on her throat, making her moan. His hands moved to her ass, carrying and turning her against him and the counter.

"Draco," She sighed, elated with ecstasy. "I need to get to work."

"Take a day off?"

"I haven't taken a day off the entire time I've worked there."

"Which is why you deserve it." Draco gently carried her to sit on the counter. She could feel the contrary of the coldness of the table to the heat starting to burn on her loins. Her legs tangled to his hips, and she could tell that he was starting to get hard again. "I'll explain to Caroline tomorrow."

"You are becoming a bad influence to me." She dug her feet to his behind.

Draco's lips met hers again, and she sighed at the battle of their tongues. His lips grazed her neck down to the valley between her breasts. Her breath hitched and she groaned when his mouth kissed her left nipple, his tongue flicking while his hands kneaded the other. She almost crushed his head to her chest, urging him to keep going. Her hands roamed from his back to his chest, going downward. His stomach was going in knots, a fire burning inside, all because of her soft touch and taste of her he kept wanting more.

"Lie down." Draco said.

Lola was awakened from her trance. "What?"

"Lie down on the counter."

"What? Why?"

"Relax, I won't hurt you." Draco kissed her before she could ask again. His hands caressed her back and laid her down gently on the cold counter. While his hands moved down her arms, his lips were kissing every possible curve and slope of her torso. This made her gasp and moan at every contact as she watched him. Why does it feel so shockingly good? Draco trailed her body downwards to his stop and he groaned at the sight of it. It was dripping wet, all for him. He licked it gently and at the slight touch of his hot tongue Lola was shocked and sat up.

"Whoa! What on earth are you doing?"

"I'm kissing you." He looked up and smirked.

"Yeah but—there? Really?" Her face was blushing. She moved to close the gap between her legs but Draco stopped her.

"I told you, I won't hurt you. I know this must be new to you but trust me on this, alright? You'll love it." Draco assured her. "Just relax. Lay back."

Lola bit her bottom lip in hesitation and Draco nodded his head in assurance. She rolled her eyes, laying back in submission. "Nothing weird and kinky alright? I haven't done this before." This was extremely new to her, Draco chuckled. To think that he was the first person to ever make love to her and do oral for her, he would like to call it an achievement. He started softly, taking a good look at the magnificent view in front of him with his fingers. Draco licked her wetness, feeling her entrance. "You smell and taste so good."

She gasped at every single touch, but eventually it started to feel nice. Draco's hands moved to touch her breasts down to her inner thighs. He teased her clit by flicking his tongue on it lightly which made her moan. Her hands grasped the edge of the counter, trying to compose herself from the bubbling in between her legs. His tongue went faster, her cries went louder. He licked inside of her, yearning for more of her, and she grunted at the feeling. He kissed her clit like she would her lips, and Lola's hips started to move into a rhythm, circling and swirling. He sucked on it like honey and then her hands grasped his hair. Her grip became tighter, and it urged Draco to keep going. She felt her entire body tingle, a fever coming in from down there.

"Draco, I'm going to—I'm—"

Lola's eyes closed shut and she screamed. Her legs started to shake, her release coursing through her veins, flowing all over her body from her head to her toes. Her back arched off the cold counter while she almost tore his hair out of his scalp. Draco moaned and continued his ministrations, not even bothering to stop her from tearing off his, the pain slightly turned him on more. He licked her juices with hunger as her grip slowly subsided. When the waves of her pleasure were over, he raised his head and felt proud of the job he did. Lola was panting, her eyes still shut as she tried to regain her breath.

"So, how was it?"

She raised her index finger to him, telling him to wait. He chuckled and put his hands on his hips, his erection completely obvious and bulging, but he didn't mind it for now. It was all about her.

She sighed and opened her eyes to look at him. "What was that?"

"That, my love, is called oral." He leaned to her limp body and kissed her, on the lips this time. She could taste herself in his lips. "Did you like it?"

She was never usually at a loss for words, but all she said was, "Uh huh." She sat up slowly and her vision was slightly blurry. "That was quite a breakfast."

OOOOOOOOOO

Lola eventually did go to work. She didn't want to ruin her perfect attendance, much to Draco's dismay. They could have done so much things together, some old and new. He was very reluctant on leaving her, remembering McLaggen's taunts. Not that he was scary at all, he couldn't give a rat's arse about the imbecile but she was scared for her. He eventually had to go back to work as well and hopefully running into Harry Potter to bear the good news, if that is considered being one.

Draco went home and had a change of clothes. His mother didn't seem to mind him staying out for the night, apparently she was too preoccupied with cross stitching, a new hobby she has taken along with some of her new friends around the neighborhood, thanks to the new help. She didn't even notice that he didn't arrived home yesterday.

"Oh good morning, darling. Had a nice sleep?" Narcissa said while stitching.

"I did, mother. Thank you. What are you working on?" Draco replied.

"I'm making a hummingbird dear, see?" She raised the cloth. All he saw was a bunch of spots of blue and brown. "I know it doesn't look like one yet but it will once I'm done. I'll frame and hang it here in the living room."

"That's great, mother. Well, I'm off to work." He kissed the top of her head goodbye as she waved at her. He brought out his wand and left by apparition.

Draco arrived in the Auror Office just in time. Across from him Harry Potter sat on his desk, scribbling on parchment with a quill and feather. Every time Draco would arrive at work Potter would ask him if there were any news or developments on his friend's situation. At first, he didn't seem to mind. He knew he was just concerned for her. But it became so frequent Draco would end up scowling at him, telling him to bugger off and that if there was something, he'd tell him.

Draco went to his table and cleared his throat. Harry raised his head for a moment and then went back to writing. "Oh, it's you. We're going to be doing a lot of paperwork today so you might as well get on with it."

"Alright. Well, there's a matter I need to discuss with you—"

"I'm sorry Malfoy, but I don't have the time. If I want to get home early to Ginny tonight, I have to finish this all today—"

"It's about Granger."

Harry's writing hand stopped immediately at the mention of the name. Surely the safety of her long lost best friend was more important than a deadline. He stood up from his seat, his face serious. "How is she?"

Draco fidgeted. "She's quite well. We've, uhm, been spending a lot of time together."

"Draco I swear if you so much as touch her—"

"I know who did it to her."

Harry stopped and his lips formed into a stern line. "Who?"

"You're never going to believe it. I mean I didn't too at first, it was so unlike him."

"Who is it, Malfoy?" Harry's gritted.

"Calm down, you don't have to snap at me." Draco put his hands inside his pockets. "It was Cormac McLaggen."

"Cor—" Harry's eyes almost shot out of its sockets and through his glasses. "Are you serious?"

"Would I joke about this matter?"

Harry paced. "I knew he liked her before, but I didn't think he was that obsessed with her. Cormac McLaggen!"

Draco shrugged. "I know, I didn't think he had it in him."

"Right? But there must be something more to it. It's not just some puppy love clearly, it's an obsession."

"Maybe he's gone mad."

Harry scratched the back of his head. He didn't know how to make of it. He expected some dark wizard turning up and taking Hermione. But McLaggen? "Does anyone else know about this?"

"That's the thing, Potter. I'm not supposed to tell anyone else. He's threatening her life."

"What!" Harry shouted. "That arse! We have to get her out of there!"

"How do you suppose we do that, huh? In her point of view, she's only met you once."

"We'll tell her the truth—"

"She'll think you're out of your head, Potter. I'm pretty sure the first time you knew you were a wizard would have been less difficult to explain. This is more complicated." Draco's thumb and index finger rubbed his eyes. "She doesn't even know she has bloody magic in her. For all we know if we told her she'd think we're the kind of magicians you see out on the street using playing _cards_!"

"Well I can't just stand here and do nothing, Malfoy! I need to keep her safe." Harry grabbed his coat and wand.

Draco stopped him, grabbing his arm. "Will you stop it? You cannot just barge in there like a maniac and tell her all of this. Don't channel your hero instincts now; you're too old for that."

"She's been alone for a long time, she _needs_ to come home!"

"She has a home, in the Muggle world!"

"She doesn't belong there! She belongs here, with us!" Harry shook Draco's arm off of him.

"Look!" Draco shouted. Fighting was useless, he thought. This was Harry Potter he was talking to. He needed to sound logical, like Hermione Granger was, to make him agree. He regained his composure and toned down his voice. "If you really want her to be safe, we _need_ to make a calculated move to get her out of there. I don't take McLaggen seriously but he has done enough damage so far that I can't risk doing anything rash that would cost Granger's life. If you really cared about her, you would think of the same thing."

Harry's stare at him went from rage to calmness. He ran his hands through his already messy hair. "You're right."

"If we take one wrong move, she could get in trouble."

Harry sighed in surrender, his shoulders slumped. "What should we do?"

"Track McLaggen and arrest him before he does anything. Find first where he lives or where he's hiding. Look at every possible nook and cranny for anything else that's suspicious. With the magic he has done to her, I'm guessing it's dark. So we could put him in Azkaban for it."

"We don't have any arrest warrant."

"Have you forgotten our job, Potter? We're bloody _Aurors_, we catch dark wizards. We'll do it tonight."

"But Ginny—"

"We don't have the luxury of the time, Potter. You're really thinking of your girlfriend getting mad at you _now_? This is your best friend we're talking about. He could act anytime if he wanted to."

"Then why don't we do it now?"

"Don't you think it's highly illogical to do something bad to somebody while they're at work?"

Harry shrugged. "Well Tom Riddle certainly didn't mind. His timing was always impeccable. He had the element of surprise."

"Yeah well that's because he's a sociopath. And even if McLaggen tried, I would know. I asked her friend to call me as soon as he even so much as enters her workplace."

"What do you even know about sociopaths?"

"Focus, Potter." Draco huffed and sat back on his chair. "Let's track him down."

OOOOOOOOOO

Lola was waiting tables when she heard a knock through the glass. Cormac was outside, his face unyielding and somber. She smiled meekly at him, trying to release whatever tension there is. Clearly this was all a result from last night. She wanted answers to the things they were talking about, answers to why they weren't fond of each other. She looked by the counter searching for Caroline, but there was no sign of her. She raised her right hand and signaled him to wait for her as she put the dirty dishes on the washer. Lola asked a fellow employee, someone who just started, to tell Caroline that she would be right back. She wiped her hands on her apron as she opened the door and stepped out. She tugged the loose hair out of her bun to the back of her ears. This isn't going to be good.

"Hi." She said. He didn't return the greeting and just stared at her. She sighed and continued, "Look about last night—"

"I told you to stay away from him."

She was surprised at how grim he sounded; she's never seen this side of him before. "But why? And why did you lie to me about knowing him?"

"I did it to protect you, Lola." She could see his nose flaring, suppressing from showing his anger from her. His hands were closed into a fist, his body incredibly tense. He didn't have to, she thought, because she can tell for herself.

She moved her hands to her arms, hugging herself, suddenly feeling cold. "From what? Draco has been nothing but sweet and kind—"

"Draco Malfoy is _not_ sweet and kind, he's a complete prick!"

"C—"

He shuffled closer to her, and Lola felt even more uneasy than the moment she got out of the coffee ship. "And he's spineless. And it's completely unfair how he can still walk around like he's still above everybody—"

She shook her head in disbelief. "Stop saying that—"

"And you are never to see him ever again, do you understand me?"

"Cormac!" She shouted and stunned him. "I don't know what's going on between the two of you but I am a grown woman. I know you have done so many things for me, and I probably could not repay them but that doesn't mean that I owe you my _entire_ life and happiness!"

His palms rubbed on his face repeatedly before he ran them through his hair. She looked at him like he wasn't the friend she had all these years. He was a completely different person. "I should have made you my wife so all of this didn't happen—"

Her mouth went agape in the absurdity of his words. "Can you even hear yourself right now?"

"I. Will. Not. Let. Them. Take. You. Away. From. Me!"

"You know what, I think you should leave. Right now. Call me when you haven't gone _completely insane_!" Lola turned away from. She was extremely furious, feeling her blood boil in anger. She tugged her apron out of her hips, almost breaking the laces when a hand clamped on her mouth.

She screamed in shock, but her voice was inaudible. Strong arms wrapped around her torso while she tried to call out for help. Why isn't anyone seeing this? She was being abducted out of her will. Her heartbeat went faster, her arms and legs flailing as she tried to break free. The grip on her was strong and her resistance only made her tired, but she kept on persisting. She bit the palm on her mouth and she heard a growl coming from behind her.

"Let me—"

Lola felt something touch her temple and heard a whisper so faint. A sudden electric charge surged throughout her body and she went unconscious.

* * *

><p>Well! That was intense! Took me nights to finish this chapter, and a few moments of staring into space. I hope you like it!<p>

Things are starting to heat up so hold on to your hats! Thank you so much for the followers, favorites, and reviews, I take them all into account. Until the next one!


	17. Chapter 17

Worried about the whereabouts of Lola, Draco purchased a so-called mobile in order for Caroline to contact him if the scumbag that is Cormac McLaggen even so as come near her. A few years ago, he wouldn't even brother with a Muggle contraption. Now it seemed like a necessity. There must be some reason why they're making such a huge fuss about the thing. It was quite smaller than a telephone, and didn't have any wires so it can be brought anywhere. He deliberately chose a silver one, but he could not do anything about the fact that one had a lone horn at the top left corner, which made him wonder, where's the other horn? So he chose the one that bended in the middle, folding in half, the horn barely noticeable.

"How did you get a mobile phone?" Harry Potter asked as he raised his glasses higher to the bridge of his nose. He'd know about this, coming from the Muggle world. Not to mention his girlfriend's father being part of the Ministry of Magic's Muggle Sector or whatever. "And a new one too, I don't think that's even out in the market."

"Bought it in Japan." Draco shrugged.

"You flew to Japan?"

"Yes, I used my Nimbus. What do you think?" Draco said sarcastically. "This way Caroline can contact me if ever McLaggen shows his face at the café where she works."

"Who?"

"Oh right, I forgot. Caroline is her friend and boss."

Harry started to feel uneasy his hand touched the back of his neck while he looked somewhere else. "That's great she still has a friend out there." He mumbled.

Draco raised his eyebrow. "Jealous that your best friend has found someone new?"

"Don't be ridiculous, of course not." Harry paused. "I haven't exactly had one of them around lately, you know? I'd talk to Ron, but he's as good as a vegetable. The only time he wakes up he just screams and goes back to sleep. I guess… I just miss them."

"Well you have a girlfriend, don't you?"

"Ginny," Harry made a small smile Draco could almost barf at the sight of it. "She's been great. She's always been there for me whenever I felt alone."

"Not to mention you can get her to bed."

"Bloody hell, Malfoy—"

Draco scoffed. "What, you tell me you haven't? Are you two, I don't know, saving yourselves?"

"Has that phone ring yet?"

"Because you know what they say, you can't take the car until you give it a test drive—"

"I'm going to get something to drink." Harry stood up immediately and walked out before Draco could finish the sentence. He couldn't help but chuckle at how uneasy The Chosen One was with the topic of sex. At least there was one thing he wasn't born to be naturally good at. Draco scanned the all the information they had found out about McLaggen—his history and background, assets, relatives, friends if there are any, and addresses. There wasn't a lot found about him after the war, Draco figured he must have settled in the Muggle world once it was all over. His family didn't entirely lose a lot of gold, and with his mediocre connections he could have possibly had some help to establish himself outside the Wizarding world.

Harry never bothered to have chit chat with Draco after he went back to get a drink and continued to do his paperwork. At least he could accomplish two things in a day. Two birds in one stone.

By the end of their shift, Draco should have felt relaxed. He guessed McLaggen was all just air and petty threats. Not that he didn't like that, for Granger's sake, he hoped he was. But he still couldn't shake this certain feeling in the pit of his stomach, it was queasy and uncomfortable.

"So I guess he didn't do anything? She's safe?" Harry finally broke the silence between him and Draco, his work done as well.

"I'm going there, just in case." Draco grabbed his coat from his chair and was about to take his leave. "I'll give you a message if anything."

"I thought I was coming with you?"

"I changed my mind. I'll go there first then call for back-up if I ever need to."

"I want to go, Malfoy. I want to see if she's alright too."

"Well if she's not, we wouldn't get to help her if the crackhead has stunned us both right?" Draco snapped. "Just go home, Potter. I'll contact you if I need you."

Harry rubbed his temples with his thumb and index finger and then took something out of his pocket. He opened his left hand and there in his palm was a golden coin. He took out his wand using the other and tapped it, giving it a golden glow for a few minutes until it died out again, turning back into the ordinary coin it was. He knew that charm all too well. It was the Protean Charm. Clever trick, it was, giving information through a galleon. When Draco was working for Voldemort, he used it on his tasks.

But most of all, he got the idea from Hermione herself.

He wasn't very proud of what he had done, but he was proud at how he thought of using the Protean Charm to do it. The means were better than the end. Draco would like to jokingly blame her for giving him the idea. He never really admitted how clever she was until it all came back to him. His stupid, self-absorbed teenage angst bravado then tormented her to no end, but in the end it was all because other than Potter, she was the only other person who put him to his place, which resulted to his feet planted on the ground at the present. It didn't do much but still, it has made some lasting effects.

Harry handed out the coin to Draco. "This is the—"

"I know what it is." He took the coin and put it in his pocket. "Used it during Voldemort's assignment to me."

"Hermione used it to—"

"I said I know, Potter."

"Fine, you don't have to be a prick." Harry retaliated. He went through his bag, the clanking so audible as he rummaged through a series of things inside. He peeked through to make finding easier but it was still hopeless. Agitated after taking too long, Harry took out his wand and chanted 'Accio Deluminator'. It was out in a second, flying out of the bag and caught it in his hands, which he then raised to Draco. "Bring this too."

"I can't take tha—"

"It's just a precaution, Malfoy. You'll never know when you're going to need it. Certainly took me a while to realize that."

Draco looked at Harry and the object in his palm. Harry insisted and nodded at him. Draco rolled his eyes and took the Deluminator out of Harry's hands and put it in his pocket. "Now go home and let me take care of this." Draco turned the doorknob to leave. He suddenly felt an urge. He missed her. Lola and Hermione. They were supposed to be one person but he couldn't help but keep them separate. He didn't know if it was a good or bad thing. He didn't know if that would ever change.

"Malfoy?"

Draco grunted and looked back at Harry. "Now what?"

"If something happens to her just because you're trying to be a macho caveman to go on your own, I'm holding you responsible."

Draco only sneered and took his leave.

oooooooooooo

Lola felt like a pile of books fell on her head. That or she's having a bad hangover. She opened her eyes slowly and the room spun around. She eventually adjusted and saw darkness with a hint of light, a silhouette of a man sitting at a fireplace. She certainly didn't have one, so she wasn't at home. But she wasn't supposed to be home, she was supposed to be at work. The memories flooded back to her as her sight became clear.

Cormac. Kidnapping. Her apron. Passing out.

She wanted to sit upright but upon her attempt, she felt constricted. Her hands and feet were tied up. She eventually did sit, with the help of her elbows and knees and balance. "What am I—"

"Sorry about that, I had to do it." The figure stood from his seat in front of the fire and approached her. The footsteps were slow it gave a certain creek to the floor that reached her even if he was still far. She knew that voice all too well. A pang of betrayal surged within her, the pain of an ending friendship causing her difficulty to breathe. "I was sure you'd be mad." The voice continued.

"I'm not mad, I'm completely _furious_!" She said as she tried to break free from the knots tangled at her wrists. "Are you insane? This is kidnapping! If it's money you want, I don't have any. You know that. And I don't have family. And don't tell me you're considering asking ransom to Caroline!"

"I'm not in it for the money, love." His voice was soft, but it certainly didn't soothed or comforted her. It would have sounded romantic if she wasn't kidnapped and tied up. "You wouldn't have agreed if I didn't tie you up."

"Agree to what?"

He crouched down, closing the proximity between the two of them. She struggled to move back, both angry and afraid of what side of Cormac she was seeing. He laughed, his tone was too cheerful. "To marriage, silly. Because honestly, I'm starting to grow tired of this thing, it happens over and over. Course you wouldn't know."

He sounded… crazy. Like a complete lunatic. She didn't think it was this insane, that he _wa_s insane. Draco was right. At first she didn't know what to do with them both, which side to believe, but now the answer was pretty obvious. She should go with the one that didn't abduct her. She started to doubt that all those times they've spent together was just an act, a ploy to get her.

"So this is how to ask me to marry you, how bloody romantic. You literally swept me off of my feet. Oh but there's a twist, you made me unconscious and tied me up as well!" His hands were moving to her face and she swatted it away with her tied up hands. "Don't you dare touch me!"

Cormac's other hand held her defending hands down hard. His other hand, however, held the side of her face. The contrast of the actions were confusing and frightening. Lola tried not to tremble at the contact. It was not the good shivers, the type that she felt when Draco touched her. No, this was all wrong. "I just don't see how the both of us wouldn't work, Lola. I had it all planned out. I would be there at the lowest point of your life and you would realize that you needed me, _loved_ me, and we would live together."

"Why me? What did I ever do to you?"

"See, there it is again. Well I guess I have no choice but to repeat it all over again." He sighed. "Oh you were perfect, love. So perfect." He face was so close she could feel his breath on her cheek, his nose grazing on her skin. Her goosebumps prickled. She wanted him away. "You'll see."

"You won't get away with this, someone will look for me. Draco will look for me!"

"Malfoy? You think Malfoy is your knight in shining armor? Guess what, he doesn't give a shit about you!" He spat, the once soft hand now moved to the back of her head and grasped her hair so she could look at him face to face. "I'm it, I'm your knight in shining armor. If it weren't for me, you'd be a decaying corpse by now."

"What, what do you mean?" She gritted through her teeth.

"Don't bother yourself, love. Once this is all over, you'll forget all about this." Cormac kissed her forehead, a gesture so sweet it disgusted her, and stood up. He walked towards the door and looked at her, a smirk painted on his face before he closed it.

ooooooooo

Draco apparated a few blocks from the café, an inconspicuous narrow one. He looked from one side to another, and started walking when the coast was clear. He felt like he was undercover, like when he was doing raids for work. This however, was completely personal.

As he was about to enter, he noticed a white fabric blown by the wind from the pavement. It wasn't too small to have been left unnoticed. He had the urge to pick it up, but changed his mind and let it pass. He looked through the glass windows of the shop, searching for her. She wasn't there. He felt a bit nervous but he calmed himself, or at least tried to. Maybe she just went to the loo.

Draco opened the café door, the bell chiming as he entered, and looked around once again. Caroline emerged from the loo. If she was there, then where was Lola? "Draco! What brings you here?"

"Caroline, where's Lola?"

She paused. "Come to think about it, I haven't seen her since I got back."

Draco started to become alarmed. "What, when was that?"

"I went out for about half an hour and when I came back she wasn't here." She replied. "She doesn't just run off like that, it's unlike her. Umm, what's your name, err, Whitney! Whitney come out here!"

A young girl with red and black streaks of hair and a scowl on her face came out of the back door. "What? It's after five!" Her hands went to her chubby adolescent waist.

"Whitney, where's Lola?"

"Oh she went out a little bit after you left with a bloke, said she'll be back."

Draco strode to approach the girl, his hands clenched to a fist his knuckles were turning white. "Who was she with?"

The girl shrugged. "I don't know."

"What did he look like?"

"Umm, tall, blond, curly hair—"

"McLaggen." Caroline muttered.

"Fuck!" Draco shouted as he ran his hand through his hair and paced. "Fuck, he got her!"

"Draco, what's going on?" Caroline touched his forearm to stop him.

"You said you'd call if he came over, Caroline!"

Caroline was shocked, her mouth went agape. "I just went away for a little bit! I- I would have called if- is something wrong?"

"Caroline, I want you to wait for a bit here just in case she comes back. If that happens call me immediately, do you understand? I have to go." He walked in long, fast strides to the door.

"Draco, what's going on? What's happening?" She said as he followed him out to catch up with him.

"He took her, Caroline. Cormac took her." He answered as he walked briskly, his breath in and out fast. Caroline gasped. His heartbeat progressed and he could feel his blood starting to boil inside of him, a sudden surge of adrenaline flowing through his bloodstream. He raised the cuffs of his shirt to his elbows. "And I'm going to get her back. Wait back at the café!" He started to run and his heart started to pump even faster, his fear and anger the fuel to keep it going. When he knew that she wasn't following her anymore, he took out his wand and went to the nearest alley to apparate.

Cormac McLaggen, you are a dead man.

He arrived on the location with a pop. The waves of nausea from apparition didn't even come to him. He went to the first thing he could be, his home. He grabbed the doorknob and it was locked, but that changed as soon as he flicked his wand on it. There was a click and the door swung open. His steps were quiet but deft, his wand at the ready. There was barely any furniture. No photos or any or paintings whatsoever. He looked through the kitchen, the bedroom, even the bathroom. There was no sign of him or Lola in it. He growled a cuss and kicked a chair out of balance. He should have known he wouldn't be here. Where could they be?

He looked for another address on his list of whereabouts, and popped there. It had nothing, just an empty lot with growing grass. He looked around, afraid that he might see a dead body. There was nothing. Precious time wasted. He popped on one location to another, the feeling of apparition started to get to him but he didn't want to stop looking. He had to find her. A feeling of desperation came over him that he can feel his stomach going in knots. He went back to the barely furnished house, thinking he must have not looked enough. He searched for secret passages. Nada.

Draco started to feel hopeless. And worried. And completely and utterly incomplete. He failed. He failed to look after her and take care of her. What a lousy boyfriend he was.

Then, an idea. He took the Deluminator out of his pocket. He held it, cool in his touch, clueless on how to use it. Potter could've at least given him instructions. It was his fault anyway, because he left immediately, eager to check on her. He shouldn't have taken her out of her sight. If only he encouraged her more to skip work. Draco really thought sex could be a good excuse, the idea he could thought of at the top of his head.

"I don't know how to fucking use you, but please, _please_—" He could not believe he was talking, let alone pleading, to an inanimate object. This was a new all time low. He closed his eyes and held it firmly. "Help me find her."

He thought of her. The color of her eyes, the way they lit up when she smiled or laughed. He thought of that smile and the sound of that laugh. The way her pupils dilated when they made love. He thought of her long eyelashes fluttering, her freckles, and her perfect lips. He thought of the curves of her jaw, her neck, her shoulder. The feel of her hands with his whenever he walked her home. Her singing voice in the car. The way she gasped or moaned or called his name.

"Draco."

His eyes shot open. He knew that whisper. He'd heard it several times but had it already memorized it like a prayer. He spun around, looking for the source of the sound, but the room was still as empty as it was.

"Draco."

It came from the object in his hand. Is this some kind of sick joke? Was it playing him, feeding on the memories he thought of her? It was pretty cruel, he thought. Making him want someone who was unattainable. But then the last few months felt the same. Then he remembered what Harry had said about it. That Weasley used the Deluminator to look for them. His thumb ran though the length of it, hoping he was right, that Potter was right. That he could find her with this. He flicked the top open, and all he saw were flashes of light moving around the empty room.

oooooooooo

Lola tried to stand up from the corner of her confinement. She wasn't going to rot there for the rest of her life. However the knot on her hands and feet would suddenly become tighter as she tried to break free, like it had a will of its own, and it was to keep her tied up like a pig. How is that even possible? As she attempted to stand again, the door opened. She hoped it was help, someone to get her out of there fast, before Cormac returned again.

"Having fun, love?"

But it was him, with his feigned innocence and obnoxious demeanor. He acts so natural, as if he hadn't taken somebody out of their will. "The best time of my life." She growled in disappointment.

"Oh no, it gets better." He was holding a small clear bottle. Inside was a blue liquid, too blue in fact. And then it dawned on her. Cormac would give her medicines for her amnesia. What if he made those stuff up? What if it didn't help her, but kept her from remembering? He sat on the stool beside him and sighed. "So, are we ready to get out of those ropes?"

"I don't know, Cormac. I'm starting to get fond of it." She replied sarcastically.

"Wow, I didn't know you were so kinky."

"You disgust me."

He clicked his tongue and set the bottle aside. "Don't make me do an Imperius on you sweetheart, or else we might get caught. Now, I'll get you out of those if you promise to behave. Will you behave Lola?"

"I am behave. You're the one who's acting like a complete madcap!" She sighed and gained her composure. "If I cooperate, will you let me go after?"

"Can't make that promise, but who knows? If you're a good girl, I just might. Now, behave." He shrugged and then brought out a stick from his pocket. Oh no, he's not going to beat her up, is he?

He pointed the stick to her and suddenly the ropes on her hands and feet detangled themselves, disappearing out of sight. Lola was bewildered, holding her limbs. "Wha- what did you do?"

"Magic, baby."

"Oh great, I'm marrying a crazy magician. What's your next trick huh? Put me in a spinning board and throw knives at me?"

"Now Lola, you promised to behave."

"You are so foul—" She attempted to hit him, but was stopped when his hands took hold of her forearms and pushed her up against the wall. The impact was so great, her vision swirled and her back ached. She shouted the pain and tried to plant her feet on the ground, but she was too weak from the ropes. He stood in front of her closely that she could feel his breath on her forehead.

"I just love it when you're playing hard to get, when you're all worked up like that."

"Let go of me!" She struggled.

"Such a lioness then and now. Come on, show me you still got it." He pushed his lips to hers aggressively, her protests of abhorrence muffled. Her hands tried to break free, but he was strong. He forced her to open her mouth, and when the moment he entered his tongue, she went for a bite.

"Ahh!" She looked at him in contempt. That should teach him. He looked angry, but then smiled and chuckled. "There it is. That's bloody hot."

Hot?!

"Let me go! Let me go, you monster!" She screamed as his mouth moved to her jaw to the neck, kissing her from one side to another. The kisses were raw and forced. She tried to ebb away the feeling of disgust and concentrated on her release. His grips on her arms were too tight. Her legs, however, were completely free. She raised her knee to his groin and it hit him perfectly where she aimed. He groaned and released his hold on her. She pushed him away from her and bolted to the door, to her freedom, her knees still wobbling. But she had to push through. She had to escape.

"You bitch—"

Before she could turn the doorknob, she cried as he grabbed her hair. She staggered backwards and felt an arm grab around her waist tightly, her hands captured as well.

"I have had enough of your insubordination, Lola. I think it's time you take another one of your special medicines again." He said as he gritted his teeth, his breath so close to her ear.

As he threw her on the floor, she choked out a sob. Her eyes started to become blurry again, and this time it was her tears that were to blame. She started to become truly afraid. She was tired, so tired. Physically and emotionally. He had hurt and harassed her that it took the light out of her, the hope started to run dry. She was going to wipe her tears away when he turned her to face him. He straddled her hips, putting all his weight on her. He had the too-blue liquid in his hand and pushed it to her mouth. Once there was nothing left in the bottle he clamped his hand on her nose and mouth. "Swallow it or you die."

Her tears finally released, and she stifled another sob that threatened to come. She won't do it.

But she couldn't breathe.

He pushed his hand harder on her face. She tried to grab on anything she could. The sleeve of his shirt, the hand on her mouth. She scratched and slapped. Her legs felt like it was being pricked by a million needles, her kicks hitting nothing but the air. She was starting to become weak and tired, and she was so tired, and out of breath. Like she was drowning. It felt nothing like being in the water, like when she went to have that date with Draco at the beach. Back then, Draco was there to hold her if ever she was going to drown. But now she kept falling, falling, deeper down into the dark beyond. The liquid was slowly making its way to her throat even if she didn't want to. It started to burn.

Swallow or you die.

She swallowed.

* * *

><p>One word: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!<p>

Is that even a word?

Anyway, sorry it took so long! I had trouble with this chapter, or maybe the entire fanfic in general. I know, shoot me. I have two routes for this story and I am still deciding on which one to take. Let's just say the other route is a shortcut, I think. I'll guess I'll just have to think about it, and for you guys to find out. (Maybe I need a beta? Oh well!) Thanks for all the reviews, follows and faves! I don't reply, I know I'm sorry, but I appreciate all of them believe me! Comments and suggestions are very welcome. I don't bite!

Until the next chapter!


	18. Chapter 17 - Cormac's POV

This is a chapter from Cormac's point of view. Okay fine, I am stalling, but I couldn't help myself from making a chapter for him because have you seen Freddie Stroma (the guy who played CM in the movies)? Totally hot. ANYWAY. It's just short so I hope you guys don't mind. I have some extracurricular stuff to do next week so the next chapter might take a while. I'll make it good for you readers!

Credits to JK Rowling and Vladimir Nabokov. Not mine, just borrowing. Enjoy!

* * *

><p>He always thought he was never average.<p>

Who wanted to be anyway? Average people weren't remarkable. They were easily forgotten, abandoned and disregarded. Average people don't leave marks throughout history.

He believed he wasn't born to that kind of cruel fate.

His entire life, he strived to make a name for himself. His family was prominent in the Wizarding world, but not prominent enough. They were rich and powerful and famous, at least he liked to think so. But there were families that were more rich, powerful and famous.

That's the depressing thing about life, he supposed. When you think you're already great, there's always somebody who could best you.

Cormac didn't like that.

His father always told him: if you can't beat them, join them. It was the motto he lived with. That was what his father had done his entire life. He blended in, nodded whenever someone asked for assurance, agreed when people sought for approval. He didn't bother to make something of himself, relying and basking on his normalcy.

When his father died, his identity died with him. No one really cared. Like dust under the rug. His epitaph will eventually be filled with withered flowers and candle wicks and maggots until the end of time.

Cormac didn't like that either. He swore to himself that he will not end up like him. There must be something more to this, he always thought to himself.

So he worked hard. Studied well, was active in sports, and mingled along with other people. And sometimes, it did pay off. Like that time he got in the Slug Club, Professor Slug's elite group for his favorite students. He liked to think he was there because he deserved it. He deserved so much better than average. What was so bad about aiming high?

That was when he noticed Hermione Granger.

They were so similar. They were both smart and ambitious, would go through great lengths to get what they wanted. They were driven, not taking no for an answer. They had a certain strength—a strength that didn't need boasting, for it was obvious even when they didn't try. She was dubbed the 'Brightest Witch of Her Age'. And so he thought, why not? They would be the power couple the Wizarding World has ever seen.

The problem however, was that she didn't feel the same way in return. He couldn't see any problem between them, they were perfect for each other. They both had leverage in the society, he who had been part of the elite since he was born, and she, the female companion of the famous Harry Potter. If they ended up together they had both riches and prestige, not to mention a high probability of good-looking children.

The moment he painstakingly realized that he was just nothing but a supporting character, a piece of furniture, was during the war. He was just… there. Another one of those faces that will easily be set aside once it was over, whether he turned out dead or alive.

Cormac hated that.

He was meant for greatness. His name was meant to last for ages, remembered in history books and the minds of generations after him.

If he had to do something drastic, he would do it.

Hell, if he needed to be the next Voldemort just to get his invisible name out of the gutter, he would.

oooooooooo

"Harry's alive!"

Cormac heard somebody shout. He was standing among a sea of other students trapped inside Hogwarts, part of the subordinates in the middle of a war. He passed through several of them, looking for a better vantage point. Harry Potter released himself from Hagrid's arms. Voldemort looked furious, his triumph ruined.

And that's when it began.

People swarmed like bees out of the hive, spells came out of wands everywhere. The screams permeated through the air and through his ears to his chest. Cormac charged. Debris of the castle started to break and fall, the walls crumbled on their feet. Deatheaters charged at him. Spell after spell, he deflected and attacked. Adrenaline on override, he ran and hit and casted everything he saw that attacked him. He wasn't going to die today. Not until he has made his purpose in life.

He helped a few students and moved from one group to another. He saved some of them from their demise, but the others weren't so lucky. He saw the life get lost in their eyes, or blood trickle from a hole in their body, intentional or not. His stomach churned at the sight and he looked away before he recognized them. Because if he did, he would weaken. If he knew them, he would not keep going. If he didn't keep going, he could die next.

"Hermione look out!"

He turned to the source of the shout. Hermione and Ron were fighting a deatheater. Flashes of lights came out of their wands like fireworks it almost looked like it was bouncing back and forth. She deflected and casted flawlessly. Ron, however, was doing poorly. Cormac couldn't believe he lost a position on the Quidditch team to the imbecile.

The deatheater casted an attack spell on Ron so great, he flew backwards and hit himself on a wall, turning unconscious. Hermione looked at him in fright and ran to his aide, but the deatheater was not over them yet. One down, one more to go. It ran to her and choked her up in the air. Her feet dangled on the floor as she cried for breath.

"Want to watch me kill your boyfriend, Mudblood?" The deatheater said. "Or do you want to die together? You know what, I'll just kill you both at once." The deatheater hit her head on a debris once, twice, three times. She left a path of blood from the back of her head as she collapsed completely on the floor.

Cormac shouted an Avada Kedavra.

The deatheater didn't even get a chance to look back at him, its body went limp the second the green flash of light hit its back.

So he did an Unforgivable Curse, so what?

Cormac ran to Hermione. He crouched down on her and held the back of her head and shoulder. He could feel the blood continue to come out. She would not survive in the next hour. He whipped his head around, looking for help.

By the bridge he saw three figures, they all wore black and had silver hair. The Malfoys. They were fleeing from the war. What a bunch of cowards.

He looked back at Hermione. Her breath hitched, and coughed up blood. She was going to die.

He put his hands on her back and the back of her knees and carried her. She wasn't going to die. Not on Cormac's watch.

oooooooooo

"Master, she has awaken."

Cormac looked up from the book he was reading, Lolita by Nabokov, a Muggle author. He was in the middle of reading the obsession of an old man over a young, vibrant girl. There was a certain appeal to it for him. It sounded so wrong, but he pleaded in a way that made it sound right.

The war was over, a month ago in fact. The light won. Voldemort is defeated. Many lives were taken, Hogwarts was in shambles. He escaped from the scene with an unconscious Hermione and brought him to his estate. Their house mediwitch said that if he didn't bring her to safety a few minutes more, she could have died. She was on the brink of death, and he saved her. She has been stable but still unconscious since then.

Cormac entered her room. She was awake, all right, but she was looking at the ceiling perplexed. The mediwitch was running her wand above her. "She's quite stable now, sir. Her rest did wonders on her recovery." She stepped out to give him way.

When Hermione caught sight of him, her look of wonder was still plastered on her face. "Who are you?" She asked.

He thought this to be strange. She has known him for quite some time to not be forgotten. It offended him for a bit, but he wasn't going to fight a sick person. "It's me, Cormac. Remember?"

She moved to sit up and winced. He moved towards her and cradled the back of her head, the soft spot that once bled in his hand and the gauze that covered it, and set her back on the pillow. "Don't move, it's okay, you're fine."

"I… I can't remember." She said.

"What? What don't you remember?"

"Anything. I…" She whispered. "I can't remember anything. Anything at all."

Cormac was taken aback. What does she mean she can't remember anything? He looked at the mediwitch for answers. "What's wrong with her?" He murmured for only the mediwitch to hear.

"The impact must have made her lose her memory, sir. Amnesia. She was hit hard and has lost a lot of blood. But nothing that could not be cured in time, don't worry."

"Who are you people? What happened to me? Who am I?" Hermione asked again. She looked so weak and fragile. Her lips were chapped, her skin pale. She looked at him with her doe eyes, tears attempting to trickle. She looked like a child. And then he remembered that passage from the book he was reading.

… _Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks…_

"Your name… is Lola." He said as he held the crown of her hair gently. "Lola Haze."

oooooooooo

He didn't mean to intentionally hurt her this time. He didn't mean to kidnap her, hit her on the wall, put her on the ground and force her to swallow.

He was just too tired.

He did everything for her. He saved her life. He gave her food to eat, clothes to wear, books to read. He told her stories. He wiped the tears on her face when she had nightmares in the middle of the night. He caressed her, touched her gently when she leaned on him for support.

But she kept drifting away from him every time. So he had to do it all over again.

When she was finally asleep, that's when he knew. They were back to square one. He would bring her somewhere else again, somewhere no one knew them. And then he would do it all again. He would give her food to eat, clothes to wear, books to read. He would tell her stories. He would wipe the tears on her face if she had nightmares in the middle of the night. He would caress and touch her gently if she leaned on him for support.

Until he finally gets it right.

He took his hand away from her face. She was the same as she was then. Sleeping peacefully like an angel. He leaned closer and kissed the corner of her bottom lip. "Good night, Lola." He moved away from her, and put his hands on her shoulders and the back of her knees, like he did before, and carried her off the wooden floor.

Is it possible to fall too deep in love and insanity?


	19. Chapter 18

It's been five days.

Five bloody fucking days.

His search began to feel like it had become a routine. A very tedious repetitive routine. But he couldn't give up. Not when there's someone who had become so important to him on the line.

He'd open the cover of the deluminator and the lights and sounds of her voice would bring him somewhere. Mostly they would be in abandoned houses or in the middle of the woods. He tried looking for any trap doors, secret openings, and pathways. Even the slightest bit of a crack he'd look into. There was nothing and no one else there but him. Then before dawn, he'd come home. Luckily his mother would keep saying 'Oh darling, look at you all dirty! You work too hard! I bet your father would be so proud of you when he finds out about this when he comes back!'

Right. Sure.

And in the morning, he would do it all over again. Draco didn't tell anyone anything. He didn't want to trouble his mother, his job, or Caroline. She had called him several times, finally using the phone's purpose. He said he'd call her as soon as he found her and asked her to do the same if ever Lola came back. And that was it.

He highly doubted she would, considering her predicament, although it wouldn't hurt to hope.

The sly bastard must have been changing locations every day. That, or the deluminator was broken. Should have known better than to trust a silly contraption. Every time he would open it, rays of light would come out along with the sounds of her voice. It was his torture and salvation all at the same time.

He could ask Potter. Draco didn't seek help from him yet. He was surprised Potter hasn't discovered that he's not really leaving the office for work anymore. That, or Potter was just biding his time before he flares up on him again, since he's not exactly the most patient person Draco knew. He wanted to find her on his own, and this was not because of his caveman pride or anything. Well, not entirely. Hermione was Draco's responsibility now, not Potter's. They might have been best friends, bonded by the gut or blood compact or whatever, but at the present he was her boyfriend.

Unless she's forgotten all about him. Again.

Draco didn't want to think of it that way. Maybe McLaggen didn't use the memory charm on her yet?

He didn't want to think of something worse he could do either. He didn't have the guts.

Draco hoped that too.

He looked at his present location, somewhere in the middle of the forest again. It was different from the others he's been at before. The trees that shaded the land were old and high, and the grass reached up his knees. It looked uninhabited, not even an animal in sight. His every step that squished the earth beneath him and the pants he made reverberated through his ears. It was quiet. Too quiet.

"Fuck!" He said as he whipped backward at the sound of something snapping. He looked down to his feet. He stepped on a twig. A sigh of frustration came out of him.

It was dawn once again, and he still found nothing.

He took out the deluminator from his pocket, intentionally leaving the charmed coin even as it touched his knuckles. He was, after all, never a man of patience. It's been five days too long, and he'd give anything to see and feel her again. Draco closed his eyes shut tight, willing for it to do its magic once more. At least remembering her wasn't hard to do. He could never forget. He just wished she didn't too.

There was a voice, this time a male one. First they were barely mumbles, and became more comprehendible as minutes passed. Draco opened his eyes, and saw the beams of light moved around him like ghosts before they shot north of him, to where the sun was setting.

"It's alright, Lola. Don't be afraid. You're safe. You're safe with me."

The voice was annoyingly soothing. And the statement completely untrue. He wanted to hear _her_ voice, not someone else's. But he knew it was McLaggen's. In a way Draco was looking for him too. He never heard of it until now, and he wished he was close. He won't be coming home tonight, or any other night, until he found her.

ooooooooooooooo

She opened her eyes, and found darkness instead of the garish light. How long was she asleep for? She sat up and regretted it, her head woozy, probably from too much sleep and something else. Was her scalp hurt? As she held her forehead, she found from her line of sight some marks on her skin. When her vision was clear, she understood.

Bruises.

She knew she had been hurt before she had her long slumber, her body was too weak that she ended up sleeping again the moment her consciousness woke her. But she didn't think it would have been this bad. It was a prominent shade of black and blue, almost purple really, and turning an ugly shade of yellow on the outside. It enveloped her wrist like a bracelet, choking its hold on her. Her other wrist had it too. She started to frantically look at the rest of her body.

She raised the blanket away from her and found that her ankles had the same marks as her wrists. She slowly raised her shirt, and found marks on her hips. Finger tips. They look as if someone imprinted it on her on purpose. To mark their territory.

Fear flooded over her.

Was she just raped? She couldn't remember anything about being assaulted. But her body was telling her otherwise. It wouldn't lie, the evidences were all over her body. The thought of the harassment was scary. But the fact that she couldn't remember? It was worse.

She slowly moved to hug her legs to her chest, the movement hard to do without wincing. Tears were threatening to fall from her eyes as she set her quivering chin to her knees.

She almost scurried to the edge of the bed when she heard the door creak open. A mop of blond hair peaked in, the color almost hurting her eyes. The face that came along with it gave her a smile so wide his jaw would probably hurt afterwards.

"Took you long enough to wake up."

A man, judging from his voice, opened the door further and turned to close it again. He wore a black shirt tucked on his gray trousers, a contrast to his ray of blinding locks. "It's alright, I'm not going to hurt you."

He looked at her and smiled wider, his teeth bared to her. It scared her for a moment. Like the prey flaunting his assets before he went for the kill. This time she did move back to the edge of the bed.

"It's alright, Lola. Don't be afraid. You're safe. You're safe with me." He said as he sat and reached out to her, his hands caressing the top of her head like she was a pup.

"Where am I?" Her voice croaked. It looked like she hasn't talked for a while.

He chuckled. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, but it's somewhere no one can ever find us. You'll be safe here." That didn't comfort her one bit. His hand moved from her head, and smoothed its way to her hand grasping her knee. "Do you feel better now?"

"How long was I out?"

His mouth made a frown and casted his head down. "Almost a week. It drove me crazy, you know, wondering if you ever were going to wake. I was thinking of shaking you senseless by the end of the day." He chuckled. She thought he must have meant for it to be a joke. "Would you like some water? Are you hungry?"

I want pain killers, she thought, and some answers.

"Water please." She mumbled.

He stood gingerly to the bedside table and poured water on a glass. The liquid made sloshing sounds and it made her remember that she might have to pee as well. She was about to take it from him when he moved to sit beside her and pour the drink to her lips himself. The contact made her flinch for a bit, but he made no other move but to help her, so she let it slide. She made small sips, and it tasted like heaven, and she gradually made bigger gulps until she finished it to the last drop. The man set it aside and put his arm around her shoulder. "Anything else you need?"

She looked at him up close this time. His eyes were green and lucid, his nose was small and freckly. He had a prominent jaw with growing stubble. She opened her mouth to say something but hesitated and closed it again. His eyes looked at this simple action. When she had enough courage, she asked "Who exactly are you?"

He made a small smile with the corner of his lips and scooted himself closer. "My name is Cormac McLaggen."

She made a tiny nod of understanding.

"And I'm your husband."

Her entire body stiffened at the word and she looked at him with pure shock.

She was married? And to a complete stranger?

"I know this might come as a complete shock to you." He said. Well, no kidding. "But if you have any questions, and I expect you have a lot, I am willing to answer all of them."

She shrugged his hands and moved away from him. "Where do I even begin? I don't know who and where I am, and what I am doing here!" She shrieked.

"Lola, calm down—"

"No, you don't understand. I have no idea about anything about me, and now you say you're my husband!"

"You wanted to know who I was."

"And how could I be married—"She raised her left hand. "There's no ring on my finger. And I don't think I'm that old to get married, I don't think I'm even _ready_ to get married!"

"I understand perfectly Lola, I do. I know it came as a shock for you, and the next things you will find out will too. But I wanted you to know that immediately so you wouldn't think ill of me."

"I _feel_ ill." She mumbled. She looked at her wrists and asked, "Did you do this to me?"

"Lola, I'm not an abductor."

"Then who did this? Where did this all come from? I couldn't have just fallen down the stairs, could I?"

He paused for a bit, and then guffawed. His hands went to his stomach.

"What's so funny?" She asked, but he still kept laughing. "Well, I'm glad my confusion is giving you such tremendous joy!" How could she be married to someone like him, whom she already dislikes after the first few minutes they have been together?

"Oh Lola," he said, finally coming out of his misplaced euphoria, "How I've missed your attitude."

"I need answers… what's your name again?"

"Cormac."

"Right, Cormac. I need some answers because right now my body is in pain and I have no idea why."

"Of course, Lola. You can trust me." He takes her right hand with both of his and kisses it. She shivers. It wasn't the good kind. The one that people who love each other share. Do lost memories take that away too? What if he's lying?

"You sure about that?" She asked warily.

He grinned widely. "Absolutely."

* * *

><p>Sorry for the crazy delay. Being a graduating student at uni is soul and time-consuming. University is a giant Deatheater. But guess what, it's semester break so I got to post this chapter! Tell me how you think by commenting and favorite the story for updates whenever I post a new chapter. Until the next one!<p> 


	20. Chapter 19

Draco apparated to his office loo. He couldn't afford to be discovered that he wasn't doing his job more than he did before, and it was almost after office hours when he arrived. When he stepped out, he saw Potter and cursed.

"Bloody hell, Potter!"

"So, I take it you haven't found her yet?" He said it with such condescension, it reminded him of her. Draco sighed and shook his head.

Harry huffed. "Alright then." He walked away.

What the fuck? Draco followed. "I don't understand how you're not so worked up about this. Usually you'd go around and start saving people like the martyr that you are, and you're not even riled up that your _best friend_ is kidnapped?"

"Malfoy, the deluminator needs some time to—"

"McLaggen could have washed up her brain by now, or worse! Am I the only sane person here who realizes that he is dangerous?"

"Course not, you idiot. Cormac clearly has some deeper, intimate feelings for Hermione. He wouldn't do anything harmful to her."Harry said, keeping his voice down.

Best if they did, Draco thought. He snarled and pretended not to be stung by his insult. "You must be really out of your bloody mind. Cormac McLaggen is a fucking lunatic."

"Who's madly in love with Hermione."

He chuckled. "Yeah, you got the word 'mad' right—"

"Which means he wouldn't lay a finger on her." Potter said as he looked back at Draco.

He messed up his hair in frustration. To be fair, Potter was right. McLaggen never even pushed himself to her, he was just a friend. Call it sappy and disgusting but he must have been biding his time. But what about now? Will he still be the same?

He had to find her fast. He may be madly in love with her but that doesn't justify his abduction. Or maybe it will? Draco wouldn't exactly know how it was to be in love with somebody. Maybe.

Draco sighed. "I'm not going to work for a few days, alright? I'll make my search longer. Pretend to assign me on a trip or something."

Harry sat on his desk and gestured to the stack of papers. "What do you think I've been doing so no one would notice that you're not working?"

"Wait, are those my cases?"

He shrugged. "Someone had to do it. They were piling up at your desk."

Draco looked at him perplexedly. "You're awfully calm. Are you on drugs?"

"Nope, just trying to be rational." Potter slouched on his chair. "Hermione was always the rational one from the three of us. And if she were here, she'd think the same way."

"Not if one of you is possibly being skinned alive or—"

"Stop being so paranoid Malfoy and get on with it. Or do you want me to drag you to the woods to start?"

"You're really not going to offer your help, are you? Usually you just volunteer. You_ liked_ getting into trouble."

"If you wanted help, you just had to ask. It's not that emasculating, you know?"

"I told you, she's my responsibility now."

"I heard you the last time. Just make sure you actually find her this time, yeah?"

"Yeah, whatever."

Draco flooed back to their Muggle home and immediately went to see his mother at the balcony.

"Mother?"

"Oh welcome home, dear. Would you like some dinner? We could eat it here at the balcony. Go on, sit!"

She was awfully ginger today, Draco thought. He reminded himself to ask her caretaker if she took any sort of medication that would make her this… enthusiastic. But he had other pressing matters to discuss. "Actually mother, I was just going to say goodbye and pack my things. I have a job to do outside of the country. I'll be gone for a while."

Narcissa's tea cup shook from her hold, her face turned somber. "You're leaving? And so soon? Why?"

"They said it was very urgent, and that I had to leave immediately. It's a very big case and it's… very important to me."

"Oh, is this what I think it is?"

Draco paused. "What do you mean?"

She moved closer to him and whispered. "Is this a task? From the Dark Lord?"

He hung his head and sighed. "No mother, it's not."

Narcissa slouched, her face frowning. "Such a shame, I was hoping you could get in touch with your father. It's been far, far too long. I believe as incorrigible as he is, I do miss him." She made a small laugh as she sipped her tea.

Now his mother may be a tad bit crazy on the mental side, but her heart was still there. Always caring, always loving. Even to those who didn't deserve it.

"Well, I guess I'll be on my way then. I'll see you when I get back mother." He kissed him softly on her cheek and went to his room. He had some packing to do.

oooooo

Lola ran her hands through her wet hair, wincing at the tangles. Clearly, she hadn't showered for a while due to being asleep for a few days, she reckoned. She sighed heavily as she descended into the hot tub, feeling infinitely better already. Now if only it could cure her memories as well.

It was a lot to take in, everything Cormac said. She was married? And to him? The first time she saw him she was petrified. You're not supposed to be terrified of your husband. Isn't there something that transcends the lack of memories that would have made her feel a little better that he was around? She should have felt safe with him, but she didn't. She has yet to ask him about what happened to her body. She couldn't help but think that there was something wrong about him.

Lola asked if she could trust him and said she could. She could try. Just until her memories come back. She closed her eyes and let the heat from the water surround her.

When she felt her fingers turn into prunes, she finally stood up from the tub. She looked at her reflection in the mirror and sighed. She was a wreck. The ugly splotches of black and blue were everywhere, and she shuddered at the thought of how it came to be. Could she have been raped? Abducted?

She was too scared to even think she still might be.

She needed to remember. So far the only person she could trust was herself.

"Lola, I—oops, I'm sorry." Cormac barged in, but looked immediately away from her naked figure. "I didn't mean to see that."

"Oi—" She was about to scold him about not knocking when she stopped herself. "What are you doing here, Cormac?"

He looked at her with only her towel on, his face marred with both shock and embarrassment. "I was just going to say that dinner is ready in five minutes. Your clothes are on the cabinet, and I see you've found the toiletries. I'll be up if you need anything."

She looked at him curiously.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing, I'll be down shortly." She answered and nodded as she looked back at the mirror, pretending to comb her hair. When he left, she paused.

Why wouldn't he look at her naked form at first?

They were supposed to be married. Surely that entailed some… physical activities that required lesser clothes. Not that she wanted to do them as of the moment. But as a married couple, shouldn't he be already used to her without clothes?

Strike one.

Later during the dinner, she didn't realize she was that hungry until her plate was completely empty. Cormac chuckled. "You always had a big appetite."

She looked at him warily and asked. "What else should I know about myself?"

He touched his bottom lip with his index finger. "Well, you are an avaricious reader. You drink too much tea. You want to be a writer but never really got around to it. I'd always tell you that writing isn't a steady job, and just like an artist, couldn't keep the fire warm or your stomach full."

Ouch.

"What about my family?"

"Your parents both died from a car crash, they were dentists. You don't have siblings."

"What about friends?"

His throat started to wobble and he drank some water. "You lost touch with them a while back; so far it has always been me and you."

"Why?"

"Let's just say they're not really into us being together."

"Why wouldn't they?"

He looked at her helplessly and sighed. "I don't know. You never told me, uhm, let's continue this question and answer portion tomorrow, shall we? I have work early the following day and I don't want to be late."

What? She wasn't even halfway done with all the questions! She had so many, her mind could explode. But she let it pass. For now.

"Okay."

"Just let me clean this up." He smiled and then picked up their plates. "I trust you know the way back?"

She gave him a tight smile then stood from her seat. She walked out of the kitchen and into the hallways. There were no picture frames. When she passed by the living room, she stopped and went for a little tour. It all looked simple, with only the necessary furniture. She looked through the window and all she could see was so much land. How far from the city were they? When she was about to leave she paused and looked to the right.

There was a bookshelf.

An empty bookshelf.

_You are an avaricious reader._

Strike two.

"Hey, what are you still doing here?"

She turned around swiftly, like she was caught. "I- I was just taking a look around."

He laughed. "You'll have plenty of time to do that tomorrow, but for now it's kind of late. And you're still gaining your strength. We should get some rest." He took her by the hand and led her upstairs to the bedroom.

When they entered, she sat awkwardly by the bed, smoothing the dress she wore. Cormac sat beside her.

"You alright?"

No, she thought. I feel like I'm a complete stranger to myself and to… whoever you are to me.

"I am." She replied.

"I loved that you wore this dress tonight." He said as his fingers play with the strap.

"I'm too weak to wear a pair of sweats."

"You look good in anything Lola, trust me." Cormac raised his hand to caress her face and turned her to him. "You've always been so beautiful."

When he whispered the words to her, his other hand moved to her ribs, so very close to her breast.

Before she could give an excuse, he kissed her.

It felt very strange. She closed her eyes tightly and willed herself to remember.

And then for a tiny second she did.

It was dark and humid, with only the light of the moon shining. She remembered herself, moaning as a figure above her kissed his way down her body. She remembered her legs opening, giving him access in between her legs.

Through the moonlight he could see a bright mop of hair.

She snapped out of the memory and the kiss and moved away.

Bright hair. But what shade? It was too dark, she couldn't—

"Lola, what's wrong?"

She looked at the man before him, especially his crown of hair. It was bright too.

"Lola, say something."

"I think I might have—"

"What?"

"I think I remember. I remember you."

* * *

><p>Well wasn't that fast? I told you I'd make up for lost time now that I'm on break.<p>

I suddenly remembered and added a thorough story flow for this story, so it would probably be easier to write them now. I've told a few chapters before that I'm having trouble which route I was going to take for RM, but let's just say I took the road not taken and here we are. I promise to make it worth your while. Sending endless thanks and kisses to those who are still reading the story, you are amazing (and very patient)!

So, how was it? Let me know!


	21. Chapter 20

Lola remembered something. That was great. Cormac's reaction however, to the memory, wasn't so.

"What? How could you—" Cormac turned on the lights and paused from attacking her lips. "That—What did you remember?"

She blushed, her eyes casted down and fumbled with her fingers. "I remembered you, uhm, kissing me."

"Kissing you?" He sounded baffled.

She nodded. It was so awkward talking about it with him, even though she shouldn't be, being married and all.

"What did I look like?"

Her brows furrowed. "I saw a bright mop of hair, kissing me, downwards, down there…"

He looked shocked. "I did that?"

"Unless that wasn't you?" She looked back up to him.

"No, that wasn't me." He stood up and started pacing himself across the room. "Are you sure this is a memory?"

"Then what else would it be?"

He chuckled. "I don't know maybe a figment of your imagination?"

"Imagination?" Her brows knitted together. "I'd be imagining someone doing things to me down there?"

"Well sure, why not?"

"At this time? At this point? In my situation?"

"I mean it could be, yeah?" He huffed. "What else do you remember?"

"Nothing else, it was just for a moment and then when I opened my eyes, it was gone."

Cormac pivoted and resumed pacing. His face was of confusion and contempt, his fists closed and knuckles almost white. He looked as if he was trying hard not to burst out. But of what? "So that was it, you didn't remember anything else?"

She nodded again.

Pivot. Pacing.

"You alright? You don't seem to look too happy about this." She said as her head slightly shook.

Cormac stopped dead on his tracks and then looked at her. His eyebrows shot upwards and then said, "Of course I am, this is your memories coming back. Why wouldn't I be?"

It didn't seem too convincing especially when he was continued pacing around the room, his face deep in thought.

"If it wasn't you who, erm, did that…" Her cheeks started to warm up with the thought of her first recovered memory. "Then who could it…"

"I should ask you the very same question yourself. Then again you wouldn't know the answer too." He paused and looked at her again. "Do you?"

"I wouldn't be asking you if I did."

"Well then, I guess that's the end of that." His eyes went round and then said, "I almost forgot, I have to make you drink something." He opened the top shelf of the dresser and closed it again. He strode to her and sat beside her, taking whatever it was in his hand to hers. "I'd like you to drink this."

She opened her palm and found a small vial with blue liquid inside. "What is it?"

"It's your medicine, for your repressed memories. It'll help you get them back."

"This will give me back my memories?"

"I hope it will."

She looked up at him. "You're a doctor?"

"No, I get that from a real doctor. Now go on, I want to see you drink it, and then we can go to bed."

She held the vial with her thumb and index finger and smelled it. It was odorless. The color however, was a very deep shade of blue. She looked back at Cormac.

"Go on, drink it."

Lola drank and felt the liquid pass through her throat. It caused a burn that spread through her chest, she had to rub it, hoping it would make her feel better.

"There's my good girl. Now let's get you to bed, shall we?"

She lied down, the pillows almost drowning her head, hoping more memories would come back to her in her dreams.

"Good night Lola." He caressed her face and then left the room.

Progress. Great. Let's hope there's more tomorrow.

There was nothing.

It went on for several days. On the fourth day she woke up, she turned to face the roof and tried to regain a dream or a memory she could have recovered from her sleep. There was still nothing. She let out a sigh that blew her messy hair out of her face. The sun was intensely bright, the windows welcoming them openly inside the room. It must have been around noon. As she moved to the edge of the bed to get up, she saw the vial with blue liquid again with a note underneath it.

_Lola,_

_Here's your dose for the day. Drink up! I'll be at work. Be home at 7._

_C_

"Oh." She said. She was wondering what he did for a living. He had stayed with her for days and nights, never leaving the house. It made her curious as to how he came to afford such a house when he didn't seem to work.

She held the vial in her palm and looked at it. "If you're supposed to make me remember, how come nothing's happened?" She said to it. She was very certain that what she saw that night was a memory, quite audacious, but a memory still. Surely it was a start of everything coming back to her.

Her feet felt for her slippers and stood up, the vial dug deep in her palm. She walked about the room to the window and opened it. The wind was warm and strong as it kissed her face. There was still nothing but their house in sight.

She had so many questions inside her head that needed answers and she bet her memories would have been bigger help. She opened her palm and looked at the vial again. Then she had an idea. What did she do that day that could have possibly triggered a memory? Only two things came to mind, one was kissing her, er, husband Cormac, and two was drinking the vial.

What if she kissed him again? He wasn't available at the moment. She also didn't want to seem to keep jumping on him for the wrong purpose. Most of all, she wasn't so certain if she wanted to do it again. It felt… odd.

Lola released the cork and paused. Surely missing one dosage would not be such a loss? She didn't drink it before she had the memory. What if it did the opposite and suppressed it? She had to try every possibility.

She turned the vial and let the liquid pour out, to the grass outside the window. She looked as the earth engulfed the liquid that was supposed to be for her. Not a single ounce of regret came to her.

"Right." She said to herself as she walked out of the bedroom. "What should I do today?"

Everything was illuminated from the night before, and she could see everything. The thing was, there wasn't a lot to see. There were no frames and very little ornaments, too dull for her taste. And this was supposed to be their house? It looked like they just moved in. The dust on the woodworks however said otherwise.

She made an audible sigh that echoed around the house. She was completely and utterly alone.

When she got downstairs she caught sight of the clock on the wall. It was a quarter to noon. Her feet led her to the kitchen and made herself brunch. The cupboards were filled with food and condiments, another sight that they've been there long. They must have thought it was more important to stack up the kitchen rather than any other room in the house. She made a small chuckle at how she could remember how to make scrambled eggs for breakfast when a few nights ago she can't even remember her name.

ooooo

Draco forgot the last time he went camping.

He assumed he was around thirteen or fourteen. His father said that they should camp out of the woods while they went hunting. Lucius figured it was a test of masculinity, the ability to hunt innocent prey and turn them into macabre decorations in the manor.

One thing he remembered so well was that he didn't like it. Not one bit.

First, because it was so far from the comforts of his own home, his own bed, his own fireplace, and most of all, his own bath, special mention on the shower.

Second, he didn't like incessantly hearing his father's arrogance. "Those insipid mudbloods use a so called gun when they hunt, it was said to fire a small metal bullet to their prey in a matter of seconds, depending on the distance. It's the closest thing they have to our magic. Well, they could try." He would say. "Go on Draco, put your wand to use. We don't spend galleons on you to slack on your magical skills."

Third, he didn't find the point of chasing over some small, furry or prancing animals. They meant nothing to him.

And now here he was, camping once again, this time on his own. He (still) didn't have the comforts and his father's arrogance, but he was chasing someone that meant to him.

Surely that was enough to stay in the woods.

He had built a little home-like tent in the middle of where the deluminator brought him next. It was in the middle of the woods again, this time not barren. He could hear rustles made by small, furry or prancing animals during the day. This time he let them live. At night, the cicadas and owls would lull him to sleep as the fire slowly stopped burning. He made a point to go through the woods during both times of day, just to see if there was something amiss. If the deluminator brought him here, surely she was around here somewhere.

He was hoping he wasn't looking for a corpse this time.

He would still hear her voice, of her still calling out his name. He would remember exactly when and what moment did her voice come from, that was a little game he played. That and it sucking and giving out light to his fire. Potter never mentioned that. He had to keep himself company, or else he'd go completely bonkers.

That night he heard a ringing sound that made him stop dead on eating his dinner. It was his Muggle phone, ringing. It was deep in his duffel bag, and he had to throw several, if not most, of his clothes before he got it and flipped it open.

"Hello?"

"Draco? It's me, Caroline."

"Oh. Why'd you call? Has she—"

"No, she hasn't." He heard an audible sigh. "I called because I wanted an update, you know, on her whereabouts."

"I'm on it, don't worry."

"Where are you finding her now? Shouldn't we start calling the police?"

He stepped out of his tent. "I'm in the middle of the woods, actually. And no, don't."

"The middle of the—how do you get reception then?"

"I'm… lucky I guess?"

"What network are you using?"

"I, I don't know. But never mind that. Caroline don't call the police alright? We're going to find her. _I'm_ going to find her."

"Alright." He heard the bustle in the café. "It's just that it's been almost two weeks, you know? And I'm alone in the shop with his vapid, uncultured teenager—"

"I can hear you!" Someone shouted far from the phone.

"Oh just get back to work will you? I can say whatever I want about you because I pay you and I'm having an emotional crisis right now!" Caroline shouted, Draco had to move the phone a few inches away from his ear. "Oops, I yelled at your ear, didn't I?"

"A little." He replied. "She'll be alright, I promise. Just… don't tell the police and, er, keep the business going. She'd want her job when she gets back."

Caroline scoffed and sniffled. "Like I'd give her the job back, leaving without a two weeks' notice."

"It's not like she wanted to leave anyway, if that's any consolation." Draco looked at his shoes as it kicked several pebbles.

"Just get her home Draco, okay? Get her home breathing and in one piece or I will kill you myself." She warned.

"All right already don't lash out on me. I'll get her to contact you as soon as we find her, yeah?"

"Yeah, bye."

Draco closed the phone and went back to the tent. His dinner long forgotten, he cleaned it up and went to his bed. He took the deluminator out of his pocket and waited for her voice. She shouted his name this time, but not out of fear, but out of ecstasy. This made Draco chuckle. He knew exactly when that happened.

* * *

><p>Another update! I got a little distracted by YouTube videos in the middle of writing so it took a little longer. Surely you can't hate me for that. Tell me what you think!<p> 


	22. Chapter 21

Cormac came home that day with a lot of paper bags with him.

"What's all this?" Lola asked.

"Well I figured I could give you something to do, surely you were completely bored out of your mind today were you?" He answered.

And it was true. Well sort of.

Earlier that day, when Lola finally realized that there was nothing remotely exciting inside their house, she went to explore the outside. She changed into a good pair of boots and brought a jacket with her in her supposed closet. Surprisingly, she felt a little lighter once she stepped out of their door. It must be something about being out after being cooped up inside for such a long time. She could feel the wind all around her body now, and so she wore her coat. She walked around their home, it wasn't that big, and wondered why they didn't have a garden.

She wanted a garden, she would have wanted one. A bunch of red and yellow roses would have been nice to plant out here, other than making the place look nicer it would have given off a marvelous scent. Add that to one of the things she actually knew about herself.

Since it was quite hard to retrieve her memories back, she made some of her own. So far they have been her recent encounters with her husband, a few recipes, and realizations of something she'd like or not. So, a garden. She likes gardens.

She continued to walk until she found a room, one that she hasn't been in before, as she looked through their windows. It had a messy bed and a pile of clothes at the side of the room. At the other end was a mirror with pictures—of her and Cormac, but mostly her. There were pictures of her quite younger, her hair shorter and frizzier. It mortified her, now knowing that was what she looked like. But what struck him most odd was beside the mirror was a table, and of top of it was a small, black cauldron. Beside it were bottles, flasks and vials. She presumed it was Cormac's room.

So he was… an apothecary?

Her vision went back to the pictures. She wasn't vain of anything, at least she think she wasn't, but she had to see. This was her past, the one she's been trying to remember. She kept looking at them, trying to retrieve a memory, perhaps the event when the photos were taken, or the ones she were with, just a single moment. But she couldn't find any.

"Lola, you okay? You drifted off there for a bit."

She shook her head. "Sorry, what are those?"

"Well, I bought books I'd think you'd like and some dinner. Shall we eat?" He said as they walked to the kitchen. She took the books out of the bag. They were different biographies of Princess Diana and a book about knitting. It looked… unappealing.

"I like these books?"

"I'd think so."

"Princess Diana?"

"She was a very influential woman in Britain."

"And knitting?"

"I remember you made this movement where you knitted for weeks. I think you called it SPEW."

Her brows furrowed. "What did it stand for?"

Cormac shrugged. "I forgot. I didn't know why you even did that, it seemed pretty ridiculous then." He went to her and kissed the crown of her head. "But I like you enough to let it pass."

When they were done with dinner, she cleaned up the plates as he helped her dry them. Her thoughts went back to her little tour around the property. Figuring it was alright to wander around; she walked further from their isolated home. The slopes of land became steeper, the grass taller. She looked all around again. They're pretty much the only people in her sight. Was this all their property? It must have cost a fortune.

Was she rich? She thought. Not of the memories, but of herself. What did she feel about being rich, of being poor? She wasn't picky. At least she thought she was. She was perfectly content of what their home looked like, although a little color wouldn't hurt. She was easily bored out of her mind. That or she was dissatisfied. And she couldn't very well find an excuse for that. Who wouldn't be when they're trying to get their memories back?

As Lola kept walking, she saw a small, clean pond. She went closer to it, and by the edge, she crouched down and dipped her hand. It was fairly cold. She grabbed a pebble and stood, throwing it sideways. It skipped over the water flawlessly. Shocked and amazed, she let out a high pitched laugh.

She can skip stones. That's great. It seemed like a nice talent to have.

Moving closer to the water, she picked more stones and continued. Until it was the middle of the day and she felt like burning.

"I went stone skipping today." She finally said, out of her thoughts.

Cormac looked at her incredulously. "What?"

"Stone skipping. There was a pond—"

"You went outside?" He dropped the plate loudly, his voice starting to rise. "You're not supposed to do that!"

"What's wrong with going outside?"

"It's dangerous out there, Lola—"

"There's barely anything out there, what could possibly danger me?"

"Just promise that you won't go out anymore."

"But why—"

"_No_, Lola!" His voice boomed, and it made her jump. He looked enraged, his face almost pink, his knuckles white. "Promise me you will not go out anymore or I will lock. You. In."

Her hands dropped to her sides as she looked at him with fear. "You'd actually do that?" She whispered.

"Anything it takes to keep you safe." He sighed and bowed his head. After a second he looked back at her again, his rage replaced with kindness. "You've got to promise me, Lola."

She swallowed and wobbled her head, feigning a nod.

He made a small smile and hugged her. "Thank you."

Another thing she realized about herself that night: She wasn't the type of person who would be told what to do.

ooooo

Come to think of it, being one with nature isn't so bad.

One, there's less noise pollution. Two, the air is clean. And three, he didn't have to pretend to like people around him, let alone interact with them. It was pretty nice.

So when the sun was up, Draco would walk for hours. He would walk and walk and when he got tired he would just choose to make that place his camping area. That's the beauty of magic. Setting up camp was just a flick away.

He got further into the woods. Too far that by the nighttime he got to the end of it. He was uphill all this time. It felt like a relief, after seeing nothing but the woods to some open sky. He stretched his limbs and grunted. The entire walking and nature thing were turning him into a scruffy, smelly hobo.

And then he saw a pond.

He looked around and then winced.

"What am I even kidding? Days of isolation and I'd expect someone to peek at me?" He shook his head and then started a big fire. "There's no point of being modest when I'm the only person here."

His words echoed through the open area as he undressed. Goosebumps surrounded his body from the cold and the deviancy of what he was about to do. The last time he went skinny dipping was with Pansy Parkinson. Or Daphne Greengrass. He forgot whichever came first; it was within the same year.

He slowly dipped his right foot first. It was fairly cold. He suddenly plunged in, and then the temperature was lower than he anticipated.

"Fuck!"

He kept uttering the word like it was the only one he knew and then dipped fully into the pond. A few laps later and he wasn't bothered with the cold anymore. He felt more comfortable than he had since, well, since he last took a decent shower. It wasn't a grand Olympic pool, but he can't be picky. It was cleaner than him and that was enough. So much for looking for her.

"Just a minor setback." Draco said to himself. He seemed to do that a lot lately. "I'll go trekking around again tomorrow." He looked at the giant moon and muttered to himself. "Where the bloody hell are you?"

He remembered the last time he went swimming. It was with Hermione too. He taught her how to swim, and she was so panicked. Not only did she not like flying (he knew that from school, not that she was observing her then) but also swimming. Then one thing led to another.

He went underwater and closed his eyes. He recalled the way her lips felt, her legs wrapped around him. He reminisced the urgency as they kissed and held each other's bodies frantically.

He'd do anything to feel that again.

He emerged from the water with gasping breath and then shook his hair. He faintly heard a small yelp, probably from a small animal.

"Oh my God!"

Not a small animal. His body tensed and screamed at the proximity of the source that suddenly fell on the water.

ooooo

Once it seemed late enough, she tiptoed out of their house. Cormac was being unreasonable for three reasons. One, they were isolated. Two, there were barely any wild animals around. And three, she was a big girl that could take care of herself and doesn't need a man to dictate her actions.

She lit her flashlight once she stepped out the door. The breeze was colder this time so she hugged herself with her free hand. The wind whispered and the grass crunched beneath her feet.

What could possibly be so dangerous that Cormac would resort to locking her up? It seemed stupid and irrational. She'd actually be glad to see any other sign of life, so she wouldn't think to be in danger. Not that she didn't like Cormac's company; he was okay for a husband. But he went back to work nowadays, and she was left with herself. It almost drove her insane. She appreciated the books he bought earlier; it's just that she didn't find the appeal. It was possible to change preferences after getting a blank slate back, right? She'd like to think so.

Lola stopped dead on her tracks when she saw a bright, yellow flicker of light near the lake. She moved closer and saw a fare. A camp fire.

Which meant a person was nearby.

Was this the danger Cormac was keeping her from? Should she head back and warn him? But then he'd discover her going out in the middle of the night when he specifically told him not to just a few hours before. So that was a no. She then realized that it was just a fire, and no inhabitant nearby. It's impossible for a fire to just randomly come to life out of nowhere, right? So she trudged on.

She approached the pond and the fire near it. There was a pile of clothes on the ground. She picked them up, they were large, presumably from a man. A shout escaped from her when she saw something emerge from the water that her flashlight dropped.

"Oh my God!" Her shock made her lose her balance, eventually falling to the pond. The freezing water surrounded her to her nostrils and mouth, as she fell gaping from what she saw.

This was it. This was what he was warning her about. A pond monster. A white, humanistic pond monster.

A pair of hands pulled her up and then she gasped for air. Her vision cleared and saw a man. A quite gorgeous man. A quite gorgeous man with silver hair and gray eyes, looking at her intently. "Lola?"

Her eyes widened. A quite gorgeous man who knew her name, apparently.

"Oh my God Lola it's you!" He exclaimed, sighed and laughed as he put his hands on her cheeks. "I never thought I'd see you again, I looked for you for days!"

She was about to ask him who he was, but then he stopped her with his lips that crashed to hers.

It was soft and warm, different from the cold of the water. His tongue easily met hers from her gaping mouth, and it was even warmer.

It felt… nice.

So nice that she closed her eyes and then moaned. It must have satisfied him because he moved his hands slowly downward to her waist, pulling her closer to his body.

Funny how amnesia doesn't erase simple facts such as parts of a male body, and the changes it goes through under certain situations.

Her logic finally decided to join the party, making her shot her eyes out and push him away from her.

"Hey, it's okay. Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He looked at her with concern, which she reciprocated with astonishment. "Why? What's wrong?"

She looked at him downwards and back up immediately, feeling herself blush. "You're- You're naked."

The man looked down at himself. "Oh, right. Why do you mind?"

_Did she mind?_

"I'm sorry, you're going to have to help me out here because I'm a little bit confused." She wrangled herself out of his naked grasp, trying not to look downwards. "But _please_, get dressed first."

His left brow raised and then he made a small chuckle. "Alright then." He walked to the edge of the pond. Oh wow. He is butt naked. She followed suit, trying to look this time anywhere else but his very naked physique. When they were on land, she turned away from him and didn't face until she heard him at least put his pants on. When she got a look at him, her cheeks flamed. He was… he looked fit.

"You sure you're okay, Lola?"

"I think, yes, I think so. It's just that, umm…" She stopped herself from looking at his body to his face. Her mind slowly functioned and formed the words she needed to say. "You see, I lost my memory, so I don't know who you are."

* * *

><p>Hello, me again. Sorry it took awhile, other than my school and student council stuff keeping me busy, I had a tough time making this chapter. You can't expect a heartwarming, tear-jerking reunion for obvious reasons. But I made it through, and I will try to spend my free time updating this story. My other fic, Hurts Like Heaven, is also in progress, and is on its last two chapters. So that gives me more time for this one, I suppose. It's confusing actually, I feel bipolar as I motion from one fic to another. But never mind about that. I'm a big girl.<p>

I may have made a little Frozen reference around here somewhere. Tell me if you figure it out! And of course the reviews are appreciated. Until next time. x


	23. Chapter 22

Draco could tell that it was her. He'd know her like the back of his hand.

It was the same face, with the golden eyes, scattered freckles and pink lips. And the hair. Whoa. It was still the beautiful mess that it was.

But she has forgotten about him. Again.

Don't get him wrong, he was completely ecstatic to have seen her. The days of camping out to look for her were torture, with the only consolation to see her back in his arms.

She was, a few minutes ago. Without her consent. Well at least he got to kiss her.

"You don't remember me? At all?"

"I…" She stuttered and shook her head. "I'm sorry. It's just that I only remember a few things, and some only from the account of somebody telling me."

He huffed. "McLaggen."

"Sorry?"

"Cormac McLaggen, he the bloke that told you?"

"Oh, you know him? Are you a friend of ours?" She said as she hugged herself. She must be cold from falling off the pond.

Draco grabbed a blanket and put it around her shoulders. "I'm _your_ friend, not his."

"Why's that?"

He sighed. "It's a long story."

She nodded in understanding. "Well, if you're my friend, can I know your name?"

Draco wanted to punch a tree. This was excruciating. But he had to calm himself down or he'll scare her. Baby steps, he thought. "Draco. Draco Malfoy."

"It's nice to meet you, Draco Malfoy. Normally, I wouldn't kiss my male friends on the lips now, would I?" She cringed.

Draco chuckled. "I believe that was my doing. Sorry if I offended you."

"Oh no, umm, it was… nice. Quite nice, actually." She cleared her throat. "Anyway might I ask, what are you doing out in the woods at such a late hour?"

"I'm… camping. What about you?"

"Actually, now that I've thought about it, I don't know." She raised and dropped her shoulders. "I suppose I was trying to make a point?"

"What point?"

She sat down a rock, and Draco followed. "Cormac said that I shouldn't go out under any circumstances or he'll lock me in." Draco's eyes went round. "I know, who says things like that? I may not remember much but I'm pretty sure husbands don't say that to—"

Draco cut her off. "Whoa whoa whoa hang on, _husband_?"

"Yes, he's my husband."

Draco's jaw dropped.

"At least… that's what he told me?"

"He is most definitely not your bloody husband!" He stood. So much for baby steps. "That little shit!"

"What? What do you mean?"

"It meant exactly what it meant. McLaggen is not. Your. Husband. Bloody hell, you're too young to get married. What a poor excuse of a human being!" Draco messed up his hair in frustration. "Married! He just had to make that point didn't he?"

"I'm… I'm not married?" She answered quietly.

Draco stopped from his outburst to look at her. She was staring off a distance, her forehead scrunched. Baby steps, damn it.

"This… this makes sense, I suppose." She said. "I don't feel anything about him that's remotely… conjugal. At least I thought it was just the amnesia."

"I'm sorry to shock you like this," Draco sat in front of her so she could look at him. "But he's feeding you lies about yourself. You're not married to him. And he doesn't know shit about you."

Tears sprang from her eyes and then she made a small laugh. "I don't know shit about myself either."

Draco put his hands on her shoulders, rubbing them downward to her arms. "I know this is hard for you, but if you let me, I will tell you everything. No lies."

She shook her head. "How do I know that you're not lying to me too? It seemed quite easy for Cormac to do so. How will I be sure you won't do the same?"

"I don't know how to assure of that, but I only have my word. I will tell you everything you need to know there is about you."

"Everything?"

Draco stopped. Everything? Really?

Everything meant telling her about their dreadful encounters. It meant his endless teasing, hurting, and bullying. It meant the torture that came to her kind during the war. The deaths of the people she loved. It meant their unexpected reunion a few months before, and how he tolerated the fact that she did not remember anything then and just gone into a relationship with her.

Everything meant he was just the same as McLaggen.

"Lola!"

They both turned to the source of the voice and she winced. "Oh no, Cormac. He must have found out I left."

"Damn it Lola, where are you!"

"He seems mad." She said, her voice worried.

Draco killed the fire with the deluminator while she was looking through the woods and then took hold of her hand. "Come with me."

"What? Where?"

"I'm taking you back."

"But Cormac—", She pulled back.

"You still want to go back to him after I told you what a liar he was?" Draco grabbed hold of her arms. "He said he was going to lock you in when he found out you went out, didn't he? What normal person would say that? He's dangerous. You have to come with me."

"LOLA!"

"Please. I have spent endless hours looking for you, to keep you safe, and now that I have," He put his hand on her cheek when she looked away. "I'm not letting you go. Ever. Trust me, please. Please, Lola."

"I swear Lola if I find you—", Cormac growled, his voice coming closer.

"Okay." She huffed and nodded. "Okay."

Draco made a big sigh of relief and then put out the coin. It was time.

ooooo

"I swear Lola if I find you—"

The boom of his voice sent fear through her. Maybe Draco was right. Cormac was a liar. But most of all, he was dangerous. She should have seen that coming, shouldn't she? If somebody was a threat to her, she should have known.

But Cormac was pretty good at changing and hiding his emotions. For the most part. She shrugged it off, forgotten about it. She may have known him then, but now she was just guessing that maybe this was how he really was. And if they were married, she understood. Then Draco revealed that they weren't married.

"Okay," she finally said. "Okay."

He breathed a sigh of relief and then released her with one hand and went through his pocket to get… a coin?

"Work, damn it!" Draco said as he rubbed the coin.

"What are you doing?" She shrieked.

"LOLA!"

She turned around to find Cormac, shoulders hunched back, clearly fuming. His blonde hair shone in the dark, and that was all she could see. But his heavy breathing could only mean one thing. Anger.

"I thought you were _smart_, Lola. You can't even follow a—", He looked behind her and snarled. "Hello there, Malfoy. Good to see you."

Oh good. Cormac knows Draco. At least she's not going with another random stranger who pretends to be her husband.

"Can't say the same, McLaggen." Draco pushed her to his back. "Hear you've been telling her lies. Again."

Cormac made a dark laugh and approached , a few feet away from them. "Your perseverance is admirable, and honestly quite annoying. Come on over here, Lola. Stay away from the dangerous man."

"She's quite fine here, thanks."

"I wasn't asking you! God! How did you even find us?"

"I've got my ways." Draco shrugged then mumbled to himself as he kept rubbing the coin. "Where the hell are you?"

"I'd ask more about it but I don't care." Cormac came closer, his hand raised, offering towards her. "Lola, get away from him."

"I—"

"You think after you kidnapped her, I'd let her anywhere near you? I don't think so, McLaggen. You better move back or I'll hex your arse to hell." Draco scowled.

Kidnapped? She was kidnapped? That explained the bruises. The lack of furniture and items in the home. The paranoia of her leaving the house. Cormac was his kidnapper.

"Not if I hex you first."

Suddenly there was a pop beside her, and she turned to see a man with glasses and hair and clothes disheveled like he just woke up. "Sorry I'm late."

"About time, Potter!"

Cormac chuckled. "Oh, you called back up? How cute. Think you couldn't handle me on your own, Malfoy? Lost your touch?"

"Just figured it would make things end faster." Draco replied and then turned to the new man. "Where the hell have you _been_?"

"Well you didn't exactly call at a convenient time, Malfoy!" Just as the man stopped talking, he ducked and then a tree behind them bent in two by a lone lightning strike. "Oh I see how this goes. Get her back, Malfoy. I'll take care of him."

"And let you have all the fun? I don't think so!"

"God, you're such a pompous arse," The man looked at her this time and smiled warmly. "Hey, you alright?"

"Umm, who are you?"

The man's face fell and them huffed, facing Cormac. "Now you're definitely gonna get it, McLaggen."

"Your petty threats don't scare me!" Cormac swished his hand at them and then from the tip of… whatever it was he was holding green sparks flew.

"Duck!" Draco dragged her downwards to the ground. They fell with a grunt. "You alright?"

She blew stray hairs out of her face. "Yeah. What the hell?"

"Stay back and stay down okay?"

She shook her head. "Why, what's going on?"

He made a smile with one side of his mouth. "Payback." He abruptly stood and then took out a stick from his pocket and shouted. "Stupefy!"

The man beside her shouted at the same time. "Petrificus totalus!"

Cormac ducked and lost his balance, causing him to falter. But he regained it quite disgracefully and grunted. "Bombardo!"

"No! Protego!" Draco chanted. A giant bubble started to form over them as shoots of bursting flames tried to get to them but failed. They all cringed and looked away for the attack that never came to them. "The bastard doesn't play fair."

Lola gasped. The explosions landed on an invisible barrier. She shook her head and then rubbed her eyes. "That's—That's impossible. How did that happen? We were an open fire and—", she mumbled more to herself. "We're supposed to be dead."

"Well look on the bright side, yeah? We're not." Draco consoled.

"Malfoy we need to get her out of here!"

"We can't let this lunatic out of our sight! He needs to pay for what he's done to her!"

"We'll catch him some other time, our priority is her safety!" The man helped her stand. "I'll distract him while you bring her back. Go to my place."

"No Potter!"

"You'd rather risk her life just so you could avenge her? She's better use to us when she's back on track. I'd bet she'd like to have some of the fun too, trust me. Now go. Ginny will be there to help you," he said, facing Draco and handing another coin. "This should take you back."

"What is it with you two and coins?"

The man made a small laugh and looked back at Draco. "Go. I'll take care of this."

"Fine. But Potter?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't have too much fun. I get to kill him." Draco's voice was stern and serious. Lola's eyes widened through fear of the changing demeanor. He turned to her and his voice became softer. "We have to go."

"But what about him?"

Draco shrugged. "Eh, he's got a lucky bone in him. The man never dies. He'll come right after. Now hold on, and close your eyes."

"Close my what?"

Draco hugged her small frame and then their world started spinning. When she figured they were done spinning, she took view of the surroundings.

They weren't in the middle of the forest anymore. They were outside of a house, by the door. She looked around, confused. "Where are—How did we—"

Draco didn't answer, but merely knocked on the wooden door in front of them. More like banged, really. When the door opened abruptly and a young woman with red hair said, "I don't know what the hell is going on but if it weren't for Harry I would have hexed your self-righteous arse out of my doorstep, Malfoy! What is going—"

The woman stopped nagging when she caught a glimpse of Lola. The woman's jaw dropped and then she immediately invaded Lola's personal space by hugging her fiercely. When she was done, she looked with tear-stricken eyes. "I'm not imagining right? I'm awake right? This is really her?"

"Yes, she is." Draco said from the back.

"Oh, you have no idea how long we've been looking for you," The woman sniffled. "Oh shit Mum must know, MUM! MUM!"

And older woman with the same hair color approached, still fixing her robe and rambled, "Alright already, I'm coming! Now what is with the shout—", and then she shrieked and hugged Lola tightly as well.

Do redheads have a thing for hugging?

When the older woman released, she trapped Lola's cheeks with her palms. "I have been praying for this day to come, for you to return! I knew you weren't dead, I just knew it! You were far too smart! Oh sweetie, we've missed you!"

At the back a loud clearing of throat was heard, and all three women looked at Draco. "I wouldn't hug her like that right now if I were you. She has… she has amnesia. She has no idea who you two are, except for being two strangers invading her personal space."

The two red-haired women's faces frowned at the same time and looked at Lola for verification. "It's true. As much as I appreciate the welcome, it's… overwhelming."

The older woman dropped her hands, distanced herself and smiled, "Of course dear. Take as much time as you need. Come in, both of you."

"Who did this to her?" The younger one asked as they entered the home.

"Cormac McLaggen." Draco answered.

She stopped, "Seriously? That pretty dumb guy you had a huge crush on Hermione back then?"

"Apparently it has turned into an obsession." Draco said, leading Lola inside, taking her hand in the process. "Potter is with him right now."

"Ugh, his hero complex is back again, isn't it?"

Draco chuckled as they sat upon the living room. It was small, with plenty of furniture all around and quite cozy. Quilts, possibly homemade, were found everywhere. Lola looked around and saw many pictures on top of the table beside her. Moving pictures, in fact. It didn't matter then because she saw that some included her. She saw herself move, laugh and push somebody in the pictures.

"Yes, that's you." Draco said.

The younger woman cleared her throat and looked at them both. "I'm sorry, but maybe we can introduce ourselves to her? As a start?"

"Oh yes, right," Draco sat properly. "This here is Ginevra Weasley—"

"You can call me Ginny. So formal, Malfoy."

"And the other is her mother, Molly Weasley."

"Hello dear." She smiled. Lola returned it. "How bad is her… memory loss?"

"Quite bad, she uhm, she knows herself by a different name for the past years," Draco explained. "By the name of Lola Haze."

"Cormac has her obliviated all this time?"

"I think so, yes."

Molly clicked her tongue. "There's something we must do, right? I mean, there must be an antidote to the memory charm."

"Someone would know, but she doesn't remember." Ginny said.

They all looked at Lola at the same time and she stuttered, "Me? I- I know the antidote?"

"You were one bright young witch. If you can't answer it, nobody can." The two women nodded.

"There is also the other thing." Draco added. They paused to look at him. "She has no idea of her… capabilities."

"What capabilities?" Lola asked.

"What? You mean her magic powers?" Ginny asked. "But that's impossible! Surely it must manifest at some point, right? She's quite powerful."

"Whatever it was that withheld his memories must do the same with her powers. She is… clueless and defenseless, which means she needs to be taken great care of."

"If I see that McLaggen I am going to—say, how long is Harry going to take? Does he know of her condition?"

Just as Ginny finished, the man with the glasses popped in the middle of the living room. The sleeve of his jacket was burnt, and ha scratches all over his face. "Boy, he doesn't fight fair at all."

Draco stood. "Where is he?"

"Out there in the woods. I damaged him quite greatly." The man smiled and was hugged and kissed by Ginny.

"You just left him there?!"

"Don't worry! I didn't exactly left him in great condition. He's pretty jacked up. It'll take him a month to heal, at most. And we'll be ready. We _all_ will." He said, looking at Lola.

"Harry, you know about—", Ginny said. So that's his name.

"I do, love."

"But McLaggen, he did a great deal on her. She's not only lost her memory, but her powers as well."

"What?" Harry turned to Draco. "Malfoy, you didn't tell me about her powers being gone!"

"Potter, she was living a _Muggle_ life. You think if she knew she had powers, she'd stay there?"

"All this time, she' seen everything! This must scare the hell out of her—"

"Umm, hello?"

They all turned to look at Lola.

"I appreciate all the concern, really I do, thank you. But could you repeat that again? Magic? Powers? _Me_?"

"Oh boy, here it goes." Ginny muttered.

"This is probably a lot to take in right now—", Harry said.

"Oh, you think?" Draco added, a hint of sarcasm on his voice.

"But," Harry eyed Draco and went back to Lola. "This is all true. You are a witch. You have magic. We all do."

Lola's eyes bulged. "So that thing in the woods…"

"We were casting spells. Magic spells." Harry sat beside her and took her hand. "And once you did them too. Quite well in fact. Hermione, this is your life."

She looked at him incredulously and to everyone else. "Who's Hermione?"

"Oh right." Harry fidgeted. "We umm forgot to tell her about that."

"Who is she?"

"Sweetie," Molly approached. "Hermione is you. That is your name. Hermione Granger."

* * *

><p>Hello! It's the holidays so here's my gift to you, an update. x<p> 


	24. Chapter 23

She glanced at her cup of lavender tea, its heat swirling up to her nose. She found she loved it, with its pleasant, calming aroma. She needed that. She needed that a lot.

A few things she has found out about herself this month.

First, her name was Hermione Granger.

Second, she wasn't married to Cormac McLaggen.

Third, she can do magic. Or she did. And she was told she was darn good at it. But not anymore.

"Hermione?" Harry, a new but old friend she has gained emerged from his room. "You're up early again? You alright?"

"I'm good." She looked down. Harry said they were best of friends, and still were if she wanted to. He told her of all the adventures they had been through their teenage years. Some were insane, like moving chess pieces really? But since magic was real, she should probably keep her mind open about other things she deemed impossible.

"Look," he said as he sat down beside her. "I know it's a lot to take in. I remember when Hagrid told me about having magic. That was a trip. But it gets better, I promise. And we are finding a way to reverse your spell. Well, Malfoy is. I suck at Potions. He actually had a higher grade than you during Potions, and you were pretty sure it was biased." He chuckled. "If it weren't for you, he'd never come back here as regularly as he did. Ginny is surprisingly comfortable around him now. I never thought I'd see that day."

And it was true. Every day he would come to Grimmauld Place and work on the potion at the garden, various ingredients and books stacked on the soiled floor. She hated that he did that, so she would pick them up and put them somewhere cleaner.

"You think he'd be able to do it?" She asked.

"He probably will, but I wouldn't worry. He'd do anything for you anyway."

She leaned sideways. "Why?"

"You may have lost your memory Hermione but you're not blind." Harry winked and then stood. "I'm going to Ron's, wanna come?"

They have also brought her to where Ron, their other best friend, was staying. He was stuck in comatose at St. Mungo's for years and was rumored to be with her before she lost her memory. Said they had a thing even. She couldn't see why.

"Actually, I was thinking I could help Draco you know," She said. "Maybe it'll trigger more memories back."

Since she stayed in Grimmauld Place, she has had dreams. Not exactly, but like tiny fragments in her sleep. She would see herself getting a knitted sweater, moving pots and pans, watching a game of what they explained to be Quidditch and walking down long hallways. They said the presence of magic around her must have triggered more memories compared to when she was in the Muggle world, where nothing would remind her. It still amazed her how they could do anything with magic, though. It was no circus show, this was the real thing.

"Alright. I'll go get ready then." He stood up straighter, stiffer when they heard a knock from the door. He was in his cautious mode. He always was whenever someone knocked the door. She couldn't blame him, for it could be someone unwanted. Like Cormac, her not husband and kidnapper. "Stay here, will you?"

She nodded and stayed still. She could hear him mumble a question, someone only the real person would know, because apparently there are potions to change appearances. Anything was possible at this side of her life, except maybe regaining her memories. She looked up when she heard the footsteps and saw Harry enter with Draco.

"You're up early again."

She nodded. "If I slept any more, I would get bed sores."

"No new memories?"

She shook her head. "Same ones."

"I see. Well, I was going on a little adventure today. I need more ingredients for the potions I'm making so I'm heading to town and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me." His eyebrows rose, his hands in his pockets. "Maybe a change of scenery will help?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Malfoy. McLaggen could be anywhere…" Harry said.

"The reason why I found her was because she went out of hiding because he cooped her up. You're doing the same to her. She needs to get out." Draco looked back at her and rolled his eyes at Harry. "Seriously Potter, you're worse than Molly."

This made her smile. Molly was the sweetest, but during the first week she didn't want her out of her sight, always asking if she wanted anything. Afraid she'd slip away again, she said. Again sweet, but slightly overwhelming. Okay, a lot overwhelming. Draco was the only person around who didn't treat her like she was fragile and vulnerable.

"We're just thinking of her welfare, Malfoy."

"And I'm not? Besides, she's a grown woman. She can make her own decisions, right Hermione?"

"What happened to Granger?" She asked.

He shrugged. "It felt too formal. So, you coming?"

"Hermione, you shouldn't—"

"Just let me get ready." She finished her cup of tea and went to her room. She patted Harry's shoulder. "It's alright Harry, we'll be fine. Draco's right, the trip could trigger more memories."

"But—"

"Let her go, Potter." Draco winked at her and sat to wait.

00000

Diagon Alley was a busy, colorful, magical place. Well of course it was magical, magic was real here. People clothed with robes and feathers walked in all directions, their voices a busy haze through her ears. It excited her senses, considering the staleness of the days she spent inside. Grimmauld was something all right, but nothing beat the hustle and life of Diagon Alley. She often got too distracted that Draco had to call back to her.

There were stores for everything, which was exactly what Draco needed apparently. His list was vast and to say the least, odd. They walked from one store to another, and ended up buying plenty.

"Careful now, you could get lost at this place. Like what you see?"

She exhaled, taking it all in. "It's amazing."

He grinned and gestured for her to follow. "I figured as much. Come on."

He wasn't hard to follow really, with his bright mop of hair that distinguished him from the rest.

She stopped dead on her tracks when she recalled a memory. A memory she had while she was with Cormac. Bright mop of hair, one that went down…

_Oh shit_. Could he be?

Was it the reason why the moment he saw her, he gave her that searing, mindblowing kiss? Why he'd been coming day in and day out not only to make potions but to spend time with her? Why he looked at her like he was longing to touch and hold her, his subtle caresses gentle and yearning?

And was it the reason why she wanted, ached for him and his company? Why his touch sent wonderful electric shocks from the skin he would touch to the tips of her fingers and toes?

She thought it was just a tiny crush. She was allowed to have that right? She was young enough for that kind of thing. And she could not have helped it. Draco, from the first moment she saw him, as she remembered, was already a sight to behold. Not to mention the fact that he protected her from her kidnapper and brought her to safety. And that devious smile which he always seemed to aim at her.

"Hermione? Something wrong?"

She shook her head, erasing the memory in her mind. Not now. "Nothing. Do we have it all?" She asked.

"Not quite, just one last pit stop though."

"Where? We've been through a lot of stores already."

Draco offered his hand. "Trust me, you'll love it."

She looked at his hand and then took it.

00000

Her jaw slacked the moment they were done apparating. It wasn't because this mode of travelling was new to her, she tried it once. But because of the new place they went to.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." Draco said. "We used to study here."

"Really?" She gaped. The walls were high and archaic, its arches pointing to the sky. She looked out the window and saw that the place was on top of a mountain, with sloping lands in all shades of green, flowerbeds and vegetable patches surrounding the place. "This place is huge!"

"Wait until you see the inside. But first, we have to go meet somebody."

Walking through several hallways and moving staircases piqued her curiosity. Walls filled with paintings moved and looked at them. Ghosts, real ghosts, floated through the corridors and greeted them. Small, raggedy elves offered them coffee, tea or a back rub.

"Students are on holiday vacation, so we have the place to ourselves. Not much has changed for the past, I don't know, thousand years?" Draco said.

They took a right and they entered through a wooden door and saw a man with his back turned.

"I see the new teaching job suits you." Draco said.

The man turned his tall, thin stature. He smiled, teeth bared, revealing a dimple on his left cheek. "Draco Malfoy, it's been what? Two years?"

"Good to see you, Professor Nott."

He gestured on his black robes and chuckled, but his face dropped at the sight of her. "Is that really…?"

"Oh right. Yes, she is." Draco put an assuring arm around her as they went closer. The room was cold and musty, its walls filled with vials and bottles of assorted, unusual things. Pictures of people hung and looked at them with questioning eyes.

"Hermione Granger. We all thought we lost you." He gave her a timid smile. "How have you been?"

"Pretty… well I guess?" She gazed at him and then to Draco. "I, err—"

"Have lost your memory, yes I've heard." He gestured them to sit down. "Draco has told me about it. I find your situation very interesting, that's why I couldn't say no when he insisted on a visit to my office."

"He's the new Potions professor." Draco told her. "If you had your memories, you would have been shocked. I knew I was. Who would have thought stringy, wimpy Nott as Potions Professor?"

"Oh shut up, Malfoy. You could have taken the job, but you wanted to be all heroic like Potter."

"I'd rather shoot myself that deal with hormonal children. So did you find anything?"

"I did actually." He grabbed an old, thick book from his desk. He turned the page, its pages nearly falling off. "Perk of being a professor is that I don't need an invisible cloak like Potter to enter the restricted section now."

"Harry did that?" She asked.

"Oh he did, and you were with him." He muttered with a wiggle of his eyebrows. "You were quite a troublemaker back then."

"But always got away with it." Theodore tsked. "Gryffindors always had the fun. Ah, here we are. According to what you've told me, her case was different. Not only was her memory gone, but also her magic correct?"

Draco nodded.

"And no manifestations have ever occurred?" Theodore asked her this time.

She shook her head.

"Well, it says here the only way to extract memory is through torture—"

"No," Draco said firmly. "No to torture. Never."

She gave a big sigh of relief. The moment she heard the word torture, a shiver went through her body. It scared her beyond belief that it would resort to that kind of violence for her memories to return.

"I thought so." Theodore eyed them and smirked. "Wouldn't advice it anyway. Her situation is of darker magic. Probably would not work."

"McLaggen did dark magic on her?" Draco snarled. "The bastard."

"He must have been that desperate. So much for a high school crush yeah?" He dropped the book on the table with a thump. "It's called the Completum Extractie, or the Complete Extraction. It says here it 'removes the entirety of the memories and magic of those who will be given this unfortunate potion'. Unfortunate doesn't even cover it, if you asked me."

"Why would anyone even want to make this potion? It's so cruel." She said.

"It was a different kind of punishment to dark wizards. In this world, losing your memory and magic is like a lesser form of euthanasia. Magic is life here. Without it, you don't belong. It's a very complicated spell. Looking at the ingredients, it most likely took McLaggen months to a year to make it. Dedicated little shit, that one. Oops, don't tell my students I swore."

Draco put an arm on the desk. "So, the cure?"

"Hmm," Theodore skimmed his finger downwards."It says here you have to make a potion and a spell at the same time."

"Good, then let's get to it."

The professor shook his head."You don't understand, Draco. This involves a very tricky potion that would take months to a year to make as well."

"I wasn't first in Potions class for nothing, Theo."

"There's more." He looked up, face grim and mouth in a thin line. "You must make a potion and cast a Cruciatus Curse five times on her."

Draco gaped. "What?"

"It says right here—"

"No, I told you Theo, _no torture_!" His palm slammed on the wood, causing her to flinch from her seat. "There must be another way!"

"I have looked everywhere Draco, and this book is only one with the answers—"

"The Cruciatus Curse is already hell during one cast, and you expect me to do _five_?" Draco stood and paced around the room."Her body cannot take it. And the intention of casting has to be pure, to _really_ make her hurt. No one could hate her!"

"Even if you kill him, it will not do anything to return her memories. He used a _potion_, Draco."

"This conversation is over," Draco took her by the arm as they moved to leave. "You will find another way, Theo. I will _not_ hurt her."

Their footsteps, his angry and hers dragged, echoed through the empty halls.

"Draco, stop."

He only huffed and kept walking very quickly. She grabbed her arm back and turned him to face her. His face was stern, eyes cold and mean. "Draco, look at me."

"I will not let them hurt you ever again, you hear me? We will find another peaceful way to get your memories back." He said firmly.

"But Theo said it was the only wa—"

"You've suffered enough, Hermione. You don't need any more in your life." Draco said as he moved to continue walking, but she stopped him again.

"What if he couldn't find another peaceful way? Draco, I'd rather try the only way than spend years to find something that isn't even there."

"What if you couldn't take it?" He exhaled, his hand moved up to softly graze her cheek. "Cruciatus Curse is the greatest kind of torture there is. And to take five? What if you don't make it?"

"I don't know." She patted his arms to assure him. "But it's a risk I'm willing to take."

"It's not something I would. I already lost you once."

Those words triggered something inside of her from the pit of her stomach. He made it sound like he had her before, that they had a romantic past. And that was when all her questions and feelings made sense. She let out a breath and closed her hands on his neck. "It _was_ you."

"What?" Draco said, but she could have sworn he heard his breath hitch at the contact of their skin.

"This would probably sound silly, but I hope I'm right. I had a memory before."

"Yeah?"

"There was a man, with a bright mop of hair that I could see from the moonlight," She raised her hand to touch his hair. "He was kissing me and—"

"That was me."

"That was you?"

"Yeah. You remember me?" Draco said, his eyes bore through her own, pupils dilated.

She nodded then made a tiny laugh. "Good thing it was you, probably would have been embarrassing if I told somebody else of a sex mem—"

His lips smashed firmly on hers, his arms snaking on her waist. She lost her breath, and maybe her mind, clearly intoxicated from his kiss. When she returned it, he groaned and tugged her closer, as if morphing them together into one being like it was possible.

Add another thing about herself this month.

She liked kissing.

Most specifically, she liked kissing Draco Malfoy.


	25. Chapter 24

Draco could not hold himself any longer.

First he had to go through hell and high water to find her. Now that he did, he has to endure her losing her memory. Again.

Shouldn't she be out of her mind right now? Gaining and losing and gaining and losing memories? He supposed that would have been possible.

But she acted normal. Despite having no recollection of anything, she took it all well. A little bit of a cry here and there, which she tried to hide from everyone but couldn't from him. Her button nose would be a tad pink at the tip, her eyes wide but with that hint of a puff like she just sneezed. And yet she was strong, held her head high, just like he thought she would, knowing her way back.

So he couldn't help himself.

The moment she told him about a memory she had gained, specifically about him and their intimate moments back then, he couldn't hold back the desire to touch her. Therefore he kissed her like it was nobody's business. How long has it even been? A month? Ever since he found her wandering the woods, defying orders she didn't like. Very typical for her, old habits never die.

When she responded, he did not bother to hide the moan that came out of his system. It has been too long that he was almost certain he forgot what it was like. But he did, and it was very, very good. He backed her up against the wall of their old school, where they had been enemies, to strangers, to lovers, to the present. He wouldn't hide the fact that this was a fantasy of his really, making out in school. Not that he had not done it before, of course he did and quite a lot, but not with her. He also didn't hide the growing bulge in his pants.

When he felt like he was going to pass out, they separated from each other. Her gasps for air were needy, her eyes closed like in meditation. "Wow," she whispered.

Draco merely nodded, leaning his forehead on hers, pulling himself together. For heaven's sake, he wasn't a teenager anymore. They were still a tangle of arms like a vine trying to grasp on the walls.

"Wow," she said more audibly this time.

He let out a short laugh, his thumb grazing the slope of her neck. "I know."

She opened her brown eyes that looked so alive from the torches of light. "So that was you, huh?"

"Mmhm."

"We were having…"

"Uh huh."

She nodded. "So you're like my boyfriend right? I wasn't cheating on anybody, was I?"

"Not that I know of." He said as he combed his fingers through her hair. Screw being too touchy, he earned it.

She felt stiff at first, but relaxed. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't going to force myself to you like McLaggen did. When I knew several of your memories returned, I figured I should wait until one of mine, one of ours comes along."

"But what if it didn't? You could have waited forever." She said as she looked down.

"No I wouldn't, that's why we're finding a cure." He said. "And I meant it when I said we will find another way, no one's hexing you."

"It's that bad?"

"Bad doesn't even cover it." He sighed. "We're not giving up. I won't give up."

Hermione probed him and then leaned her head to the side. "You love me don't you? I can see that you do. How come I never noticed that until now?"

Draco paused.

So he did love her. Of course he did. Draco knew it then but never told her about it, for fear she would think of it as something that happened so soon. He didn't think he was even capable of such immediate affection. Not that he couldn't help it, she wasn't hard to love at all. He shrugged and made a sly grin, "I guess I'm a good actor, which you probably already know from our dinners with Molly."

They all thought it was best that Hermione stayed with the Weasleys in the meantime while they looked for her cure. Harry thought he wouldn't mind, but he very damn well did. He missed her a whole lot and he intended to give her the utmost care. Besides, there was nobody better who could protect her other than himself. But Molly interjected about them missing her for the last few years, and that he was welcome to visit her as often as he wanted. So he did, he visited every single day, which meant a daily contact with the redheaded clan. At first it was awkward, they weren't going to be best friends overnight because of Hermione but luckily Molly, being the mother and all, made the peace intact. This included shared dinners as she stuffed all of them, including Draco now, with her stuff meats, mashed fruits and veggies, and a plate full of dessert. He would often decline for another round, but the old woman was insistent to the point of coercive that he had to pretend he kept eating even if in reality he was shoving them down to the house pet, Fang.

"She knows you're giving them to Fang, you know," Hermione interjected his thoughts. "After we eat, she gives him the rest, only to find out that he's already full and sleepy."

"What can I say? I'm a dog person."

"Are you?"

"No."

This made Hermione laugh. For the first time since before she was abducted her childlike mirth returned. He even earned a silent snort from her, which made him smile of triumph. "What is so funny?"

"I don't know, it's just," Her laughter died down, head shaking as he looked down. "Everyone thinks I'm so fragile. I don't feel like a normal person to them. I just want to be normal."

"They missed you. They're taking care of you."

"But I'm not a child Draco. I'm just… broken." She looked up at him and then scoffed. "Oh don't look at me like that, I'm not throwing a pity party here. I am disabled but not hopeless, and I don't like to be treated like I'm going to fade away if they didn't handle me delicately."

"I always thought you would, though."

"What?"

"Fade, slip away from me." Draco leaned on the pillar. "You were abducted. I wasn't even there when it happened. But I should have been. I could have saved you."

"Don't blame yourself. If anything, compared to everyone else you treat me normally."

"That's not how I would do normal with you."

Hermione tilted her head. "How would you do normal with me?"

"If I did normal with you I'd lock us up in your bedroom and never leave unless for food." Draco caressed her shoulders to her hands. Her eyes bulged like twin moons. "What?"

"I think I need, um, time to err, get used to this."

"What?"

"The whole relationship thing. And the dirty talk."

Draco guffawed and pulled her to his chest, a vision of her confused look at his sudden laughter made him almost cry.

"What? Oh, you're laughing at me aren't you?" Hermione asked, her voice muffled from his chest. She pushed herself away from his arms and looked defensive. "Why are you laughing at me?"

"I'm sorry," He said, half convincingly as he tried to die down his jest. "I should have known you're still a bit conservative. You always had been, you just needed a little coaxing."

"I wonder how on earth did I ever agree to being your girlfriend with that kind of attitude?" She teased.

"Because you loved me too." He winked.

Hermione bit her lip, the joke over. "I did?"

Draco could not help but become serious as well. He knew he loved her, but wasn't sure if she felt the same. They had such little time to find out. He was almost certain it was over before it had begun after what happened to her again but hoped it wasn't. "Does it even matter? With your memories gone?"

"Draco, I lost my memory not my feelings."

"But feelings grow through the memories you make. And from what we've had so far, it's not even close to what we had."

"Well what about that memory? It was a personal, very intimate memory," She blushed. She must have been seeing it in her head. Draco sure did. "Isn't that something?"

"Hermione, I don't want to force you into loving or liking me back. All your friendships, especially with Potter and the lot which were very deep, are back to square one. They're like strangers to you now. That includes me."

"That's why we're doing all of this, aren't we? To gain them back. But Draco, as important as my past is, I have a present and a future to think of too. And I'd like everyone to be in it, even you."

"I know and I understand what you mean. What I'm trying to say is that," He kicked an invisible pebble on the ground and looked at her. "You can have me any way you want, as a friend or a lover. It's all up to you. That's all I'm saying."

She nodded in understanding. "Thank you."

Draco nodded back and then made a sly grin. "With the benefit of getting to kiss you now and then, maybe?"

Her laughter rang around the walls of Hogwarts, her smile casted down but bright nonetheless. "Maybe. We heading back now?"

Draco offered his hand which she took and they apparated.

ooooo

Two weeks after their little trip to Hogwarts and they still haven't found an alternative cure. Normally, with Draco's temper, he could have thrown a fit by the first week. It just so happened that despite the lack of improvement, he had time to spend with Hermione, which was a blessing in all the madness.

It felt like he was pursuing him again, which surprisingly he didn't mind. Sure he had spent time with her and almost never let her out of his sight ever since she came back home, but they were closer than ever. It was like flirting with her all over again. The rest of the household did not fail to notice it. Ginny almost pounded on Draco the other day, demanding why his grimy hands were all over Hermione. Good thing Potter stopped her just in time, but still irritated his guts that he didn't mention that information with his fiancée. What happened to telling your better half everything? As for Draco, he had yet to tell her all about the two of them. And all meant all.

Hermione was sitting on her bed, perched with Hogwarts: A History. They said it was her favorite book before, and to have an idea of the wizarding world, Draco gave her a copy. He sat beside her, his hands and legs crossed. "You like it?"

"It's a lot to take, but yes." She looked up to him. "You said this was my favorite book?"

"That's what they said."

She gasped. "You don't know my favorite book?"

"Well…" He winced.

"I thought you were supposed to be my boyfriend? How could you not know my favorite book?" Hermione gave him an accusatory stare, and actually put the book down, waiting for his answer. It was a scary sight to behold, he had to admit the truth.

"Okay, here's the thing." He raised a hand in surrender. "We knew each other way back in Hogwarts, but it wasn't until after that that we got together. So I didn't know, alright? In fact, I… I used to bully you all the time."

"_What?_"

"I know, I know, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for all the mean things I called you, which I am glad you don't remember as of the moment." He said as he gave her a chaste kiss on the lips. "Now I know."

"Why did you bully me all the time? And don't lie to me."

Draco sighed and shook his head. Better to explain himself now before she gets cured. That was one of his fears. When her memories return, and all of it, he didn't know how she would act around him. Would she hate him for deceiving her? Would her feelings change and be gone? He didn't want to find out, but she needed those memories. He just hoped she needed him too.

"My family is very… opinionated about certain things. And these opinions are often traditional and, well, rude. As a kid you're told to follow your parents, even if they're wrong. I worshiped them, and so my judgment was clouded just like my family's. It involved my opinion of you. That, and we were head to head for top of the class. It was all very immature, really."

"That's so… childish."

"I know, love." He kissed her forehead. "Forgive me?"

She shrugged. "I don't see why not. You've been making it up to me ever since, I suppose?"

"I will do anything you want. I am your humble servant." He gestured in which she gave him a meek smile. His hand rose to touch her neck, his thumb grazing the line of her jaw and gazed on her like she was art and miracles combined. "Have I told you how beautiful you are?"

"This is you trying to make up for bullying me, isn't it?"

"No, this is me hitting on you." He winked. "And telling the truth."

Draco was about to give Hermione the best kiss she'll ever get with her blank slate of a memory when Potter barged through the door with bang.

"What the _fuck_ Potter! Haven't you ever heard of the word _privacy_?"

"Sorry," He said, stricken. "I really hope I didn't ruin something but… Ron's awake."


End file.
